MODALITY FLUX, OR ANTICIPATING THE UNPREDICTABLE

The pandemic of 2020-2021 has renewed many administrators' push for faculty to develop online courses, yet anecdotal evidence from students signals a strong desire for face-to-face or shoulder-to-shoulder course-content delivery. In March 2020, Missouri State University extended the scheduled Spring Break for one week, lead time for switching to online modality. It was difficult from both teachers' and students' perspectives; many labs were converted to online content since there was little alternative. Even so, it was possible to adapt to this nouvelle normale. In the Summer of 2020, thoughtful instructors prepared for online delivery in the Fall. In August, with decreased classroom capacities, social distancing, mandatory facemask policies, and sanitation stations in place, the Board of Governors and President decided that instruction in the Fall semester would be delivered face-to-face with a few exemptions. Secure quarantine accommodations were made available for ill and exposed students. The semester began la nouvelle nouvelle normale: as quarantines and illnesses increased, it was less than most folks feared. Countermeasures had seemed to work. In the Spring semester of 2021, smaller sections are offered in face-to-face format, and larger sections are delivered in blended, mostly online mode.

Effective student learning requires exceptional audio and video quality as well as entertaining delivery. Personal experiences, photos, videos, and stories from trusted sources provide the most compelling content for online instruction. In this presentation, I provide a list of gear and advice on course-development workflow that makes it possible to deliver high-quality online content. I use a video camcorder and digital bridge camera for capturing lectures, and AudioTechnica microphone with pop filter, mic boom, and mixer for audio recording. Processing is completed using Audacity, a freeware product. Video production with Camtasia provides for importation of Powerpoint slides, drop-in photos, and picture-in-picture video lectures to provide saliency. Videos are uploaded to my channel in YouTube, and links and presentations are provided via Blackboard. It roughly takes eight hours to amend an existing lecture, edit, and compile audio and video to complete a 30 to 40-minute video production.