The Teaching Center’s Media Creation Lab is a broadcast-grade digital media studio designed for the development of a wide range of multimedia content. Our mission is to provide the training and equipment necessary for instructors and staff to produce their own innovative and effective teaching and learning resources.
The Media Creation Lab is located in B-23 Alumni Hall and has built-in technology to perform lightboard demonstrations and record podcasts, studio lecture captures, webcasts and webinars, as well as produce additional multimedia projects by request.
To schedule time in the lab, fill out this form.
Lightboard
The lightboard is a glass chalkboard pumped full of light for recording video lecture topics. Instructors can face forward toward the viewer as they speak and draw, as opposed to having their back face the audience.
In the video below, Sam Dickerson, assistant professor in the Swanson School of Engineering, demonstrates how it works.
Podcasting
A podcast is an audio recording of a host’s voice speaking about a subject that is designed to be delivered in an on-demand manner. Typically, podcasts are managed by an app on one’s smartphone. When a new episode is published, individuals who are subscribed get notified and the episode is automatically downloaded to their device.
Some instructors record podcasts of their lectures, while others produce original content, such as the Remains to Be Seen show — an interdisciplinary effort about medical humanities.
Learn more about how faculty members in the departments of English and Nursing collaborated with the Teaching Center to record their episodes on “the macabre nature of medical research” in the video below.
Studio lecture capture
Studio lecture capture refers to the process of creating a video resource — in a recording studio, rather than in front of a live class — for the purpose of presenting course content to students. With a recorded lecture, you can “flip” your class by having students watch the lecture outside of class during the time they’d normally be doing homework, then have them actively work on problems or a project during class time. Instructors can also present material intended to supplement, remediate or enhance course content delivered during traditional class sessions with captures.
Webcasts and webinars
Webcasts and webinars are typically streamed in real time, but they can also be recorded for maximum viewing flexibility, allowing for remote learning and online teaching. This form of multimedia allows faculty and staff to create educational videos, host research webinars, share slide presentations and interview guests.