Zoom Q & A

Zoom Q & A

Connecting to Zoom and Getting Help

What is the zoom help phone number?
The number for the US: +1.888.799.9666 ext 2, but there are other ways to contact Zoom, as well. Find all points of contact in the Zoom Video Communications Technical Support Links to an external site. knowledge base article under the Business, Education, or API segment.
I am having repeated connectivity issues (freezing, dropped audio, dropped video). I am joining in from home. While I could explore how things work at my office, I wonder how many students will experience similar challenges when they join my zoom class from diverse locations, and the impacts on teaching and learning.
For these very reasons, we recommend keeping in mind that your students will have varying experiences with synchronous learning. Be prepared to provide learning materials and instructions in multiple, alternate, ways.
If students click on URL in Canvas are they automatically prompted to log in using linkblue ID?
If they have already logged into Canvas to access your course, they will not be asked to log in again if they click a zoom meeting URL in your Canvas course. They will automatically be logged in.
If this is done through Canvas, will they be able to see their grades there or to click on that link?
Students will only be able to see what you share with them in Zoom. This is one reason to prepare before the meeting is scheduled by 1) opening any documents, programs, websites you want to share and 2) closing anything that you do not want to occur during the meeting (such as Instant Messaging, Email, or other services). It is ok to have your canvas course open in browser, but be careful not to click on the Grade view, as that will show all of your attendees (students) the whole Grade Book view (all student data within that window).
To what degree are the students (I’m at the law school) already familiar with Zoom?
Though Zoom has been readily available for all UK Faculty, Staff, and Students, it may not have been used by students previously, unless utilized in a previous course.
The features of Zoom, however, are common among other web conferencing tools (Video, Audio, Share), so it is possible they've experienced similar web meetings before.
In any case, it is recommended to create an initial Zoom meeting to allow students to test their hardware, software, and internet capabilities while giving you the opportunity to provide your expectations for future meetings.
Do the students need to install the zoom meeting client?
The Zoom Client is not required for students to attend meetings as participants, though if you intend for them to share their desktop, webcam, audio (i.e. present), using the client is recommended.

Setting up Zoom & Zoom features

What is the Registration option?
Registration for Meetings Links to an external site. option as you set up your meeting will require your participants to register for your meeting by providing their email, name, etc. This is often used for large meetings that are open to the public and not class meetings.
What will students need to do to join the meeting?
The students need the meeting URL to join your meeting. This can be found within the UK Zoom Portal (https://uky.zoom.us Links to an external site.) under Meetings.
How do you create a poll question?

You can create a Poll in two ways:

  1. While setting up the meeting or editing an already scheduled meeting
    1. Go to the Meetings page and click on your scheduled meeting. If you do not have a scheduled meeting, schedule a meeting now.
    2. From the meeting management page, scroll to the bottom to find the Poll option. Click Add to begin creating the poll.
    3. Enter a title and your first question.
    4. (Optional) Check the box to make the poll anonymous, which will keep the student's polling information anonymous in the meeting and in the reports.
    5. Select whether you want the question to be a single choice(participants can only choose one answer) or a multiple-choice question (students can choose multiple answers).
    6. Type in the answers to your question and click Save at the bottom.
    7. If you would like to add a new question, click Add a Question to create a new question for that particular poll.
    8. You can add more polls by repeating Step b.
  2. You can also create a poll by clicking Polling during the meeting. This will open up your default web browser where you can add additional polls or questions.

Note: You can only create a max of 25 polls for a single meeting.

Check out the Polling for Meetings (Links to an external site.) Zoom knowledge base article for more information.

How do you erase things on the whiteboard?
There is an eraser icon in the whiteboard/annotation toolbar that you can use to remove annotations, shapes, and icons you've inserted into the whiteboard.
Take a look at the Using annotation tools on a shared screen or whiteboard Links to an external site. Zoom knowledge base article for more information.
When you click share, does it go live at that moment?
It will go live the moment you choose what you will want to share (Desktop, application, browser, etc.) from the Share pop-up.
Check out the Sharing your screen Links to an external site. Zoom knowledge base article for more information.

Teaching in Zoom

Do we need to add zoom for every class?
Yes, you will need to create a separate zoom meeting for each class you are teaching (you can make these recurring meetings so each class will only need one meeting room or two if you wish to have office hours). If you are accessing Zoom through Canvas, you will need to Enable it in every Canvas course for which you wish to provide synchronous sessions.
How to participants ask a question interrupting my teaching?
There are several options you can discuss with your class for interactions: they can 1) type into the text chat to ask a question, 2)unmute to get your attention to ask a question and make a statement, 3)use the 'Raise Hand' to get your attention and either unmute to ask a question via audio or type their question into the text chat. We recommend the third option, as it allows you to determine the best point during your instruction to stop and look for raised hands.
Check out Nonverbal Feedback During Meetings Links to an external site. Zoom knowledge base article for more information.
I presume that we don’t need to use Canvas to use Zoom, correct? Some of us don’t already use Canvas
No, you do not need to use Canvas to use Zoom, though if you do not already have a platform to manage your class, Canvas is a good tool for this.
How can you know which students attended mtg?
If you have your Zoom meeting linked within your Canvas course, this question has a very easy answer - you will see your students' names in the Participant list.
If you have shared your Zoom meeting by other means (via email, over social media, etc.) students can either log into the Zoom meeting using their linkblue login ID (recommended - similar results as above) or as Guest (in which they can input their username as anything - not recommended), it may become difficult to determine who has joined your room, though you can ask them who they are and rename them using participant list controls.
Take a look at the Managing Participants in a meeting Links to an external site. Zoom knowledge base article for more information.
How does one take attendance in zoom?
You can use Polling to ask questions to your students within Zoom and later access the Poll Response data to see you had responded. Please make sure that you have not checked the box to make the response anonymous.
Take a look at Generate Meeting Reports for Registration and Polling Links to an external site. Zoom knowledge base article for more information.
Can we actually use the whiteboard in the classroom?
Yes, you can have multiple (up to 2) cameras attached to your computer. If you have one pointed at your class' whiteboard, you will be able to switch back and forth between camera views. You can also share a camera view with your meeting via Share option.
Check out the Screenshare a Camera Input Links to an external site. Zoom knowledge base article for more information.
Does it show the student name or the linkblue ID?
It will show the student's username, which should be their Display Name (First Name Last Name) if they've logged into the meeting using their linkblue login ID. Otherwise, it will show whatever they have put as their username.
How to best do interactive lectures with a large group of students during class?
You can use a combination of the nonverbal feedback and polling while you lecture to pump up the student participation within your lectures.
Check out Nonverbal Feedback During Meetings Links to an external site. Zoom knowledge base article for more information.
Check out the Polling for Meetings (Links to an external site.) Zoom knowledge base article for more information.
Could you please show how to put students in small groups? And how the instructor can go from one group to the other?
Creating Breakout Rooms is as easy as clicking the Breakout Rooms icon at the bottom of your meeting and inputting the number of rooms you would like to create.
Once you have your breakout groups created and students assigned, you'll be able to manage Breakout Room by using the options.

More information can be found in the following Zoom knowledge base articles:

But how can you close grades if Canvas is open?
If you are sharing your Canvas course within your Zoom meeting, just be sure not to click on the Grades page. Also make sure not to have your email open which may contain sensitive information from other students.
Sounds like the client can be helpful for project presentations from a group of students? If not, what the best way to do it?
There are several ways students can present within Zoom:
  • A single participant is allowed to share screen, voice, and webcam (With Audience, During Class, can be recorded).
  • A group of participants is allowed to share their screen, voices, and webcams (With Audience, During Class, can be recorded).
  • Groups of participants are put into breakout rooms where they share their screen, voices, and webcams (Without Audience, During Class, can be recorded by breakout room participant if the feature is turned on).
  • Groups are instructed to create their own Zoom meeting where they perform presentations by sharing their screen, voices, and webcams (Without Audience, Outside of Class Time, can be recorded).
In any of these situations, the use of the desktop client is not needed but can be very useful. Chrome is the preferred browser for accessing Zoom meetings via a browser.
Check out the Zoom Web Client Links to an external site. knowledge base article for more information.
Also see the Desktop client and mobile app comparison Links to an external site. knowledge base article for more about other ways to access Zoom meetings.
Do professors retain rights to the intellectual property that they post?
This is a complex question. Let me provide some resources to allow you to research and find out if you are able to retain the rights to IP that you share with your students:
Which lecture types does Zoom support?
Zoom supports most lecture types.
Traditional oration lectures simply require you to be in the meeting room and for your mic to be unmuted - webcam is optional but highly recommended.
Participatory lectures are supported through polling, breakout rooms, and general discussion in the main meeting room. Students can also share their screens.
Multimedia lectures are supported via screen share and webcam/mic. Any type of media that you can show your students from your screen, or by displaying the media through mic or cam is supported. Always remember to tick the box that says share computer sound if you are sharing sound with your students. This option is found on the share screen.
Your lectures will often have a blended approach, and Zoom can handle this. Remember to plan your lecture ahead of time, and if possible complete a trial run before your scheduled meeting time to work out any technical issues.
Will videos for break out rooms and polling be made available for us to reference later?
Here are some great videos for learning the features of Zoom and how to use them while teaching:

Sharing in Zoom

Where was that screen share option? she went so fast!
The screen share option is found at the bottom, center, of the meeting room. It is a green box with arrow pointing up.
Check out the Sharing your screen Links to an external site. knowledge base article for more information.
Are all open apps screens/shareable. For example if you were streaming a section of a netflix video for example are their DLC restrictions that would not allow that to appear?
Any publicly available streaming video should be shareable. For any private streaming services, experiences may vary.
Should students be prompted to have share screen on?
Not unless you wish them to share their screen.
When I am using a whiteboard do others see only the whiteboard, or can they see me as well?
If you are sharing that whiteboard with the meeting, they will see your whiteboard. If you have your webcam on, they will also see you.
So I have a legal UK video to show, do I do that on share screen?
Yes, you can share a video that is either on your local machine or via a streaming service. Just make sure that you have checked the boxes to 'Share computer sound' and 'Optimize for full-screen video clip' found at the bottom of the share screen pop-up.