In July, Research, Teaching, and Learning (RTL) will roll out a new enterprise video management platform to support remote and hybrid instruction called Kaltura. Kaltura is a web-based, secure platform that will integrate with bCourses and will allow instructors, students and staff to upload, edit, manage and share videos and other media through bCourses. You can learn more about the functionality of Kaltura here. Think of this platform as a centrally supported and protected version of YouTube for instructional media files you need to share with your students or they need to share with instructors and peers. Additionally, RTL and Disabled Students’ Program (DSP) together have developed a workflow so that DSP can make the approved closed captioning accommodations when needed. Instructors will also be able to view analytics for valuable insight and feedback on how their students are engaging with audio/video learning content.
Course Capture, Berkeley’s classroom lecture recording service, will also be leveraging Kaltura as its publishing platform and will no longer be publishing to YouTube. The benefits of using Kaltura include course-restricted access to recordings. Instructors will also have options to trim and review their recordings before making Course Capture recordings available to students. With the transition to Kaltura, RTL plans to upgrade the capture equipment in this existing set of capture-capable classrooms. In addition, planning is underway both to expand the number of capture-capable classrooms and to expand the capabilities within the overall inventory, such as by adding video cameras into more of the classrooms.
Service Timeline, Workshops and Training Opportunities
The Kaltura platform was purchased in February 2020 for Fall 2020 implementation but RTL has fast-tracked the service to launch this July. We will provide workshops, training, and help guides for the July launch. Announcements for these opportunities will be widely shared with the instructional community in the coming weeks. When our classroom staff return to campus, they will begin to upgrade the lecture capture systems for the Kaltura integration. We will continue to communicate which classrooms are available over the summer.
General Support, Training, and Technologies
Faculty have several resources available to support instruction. RTL will be offering a variety of ongoing training opportunities and other support over the summer. Instructors are also encouraged to review the suite of resources available to support instruction in preparation for Fall.
If you have specific questions about tools or training, please feel free to reach out to digitallearning@berkeley.edu