Viewer Captions
Smart Search
Notes
Video Playback Options
Keyboard Shortcuts
Embed Quizzes & Discussios
Download Options & Offline Access

Panopto Accessibility and Universal Design for Learning (UDL) Best Practices

Panopto offers a suite of features that align with Universal Design for Learning (UDL) principles and accessibility standards, ensuring your course content is more inclusive and adaptable to diverse learner needs. By leveraging these tools, faculty can foster greater engagement, reduce barriers to access, and support self-regulated learning for all students.

Viewer Captions

Instructors can model the use of viewer captions for inclusive comprehension. Captions enhance comprehension, vocabulary acquisition, and memory recall, especially for English language learners and students with disabilities.

Captions are important because they support students who are deaf or hard of hearing, those with auditory processing challenges, non-native English speakers, and anyone who benefits from reinforcement of spoken content.

Best Practices

Enable automatic captioning for all recordings.
Edit captions to correct critical terminology, proper names, or academic jargon.
Inform students of caption availability in syllabi or announcements.

How To

Closed captions can be toggled by the viewer for on-screen transcription of spoken content.

In the Panopto Video Viewer, as shown below, users can click the CC button on the lower right hand-side of video playback controls to display the closed captions. Additionally, users can select the "Captions" tab from menu to the left to view a transcript of the captions.

Panopto Video Viewer caption options.

If you have embedded a Panopto video recording in the Rich Content Editor in Canvas (i.e. a page, discussion description, quiz question, assignment description) users can click the CC option on lower right corner of the embedded video viewer to display closed captions. The example below shows an embedded Panopto video recording in a Canvas page.

Closed captioning option on the Panopto video viewer.

To learn more about how to add closed captions to video in Panopto, refer to the Panopto -Accessible Video guide.

Additional Resources:

Smart Search

Smart Search allows users to search within video content, including spoken words, PowerPoint/Keynote slide text, and captions.

According to CAST’s UDL Guidelines, providing options for perception supports diverse learners. Panopto’s Smart Search enables students to search within video content (e.g., spoken words, on-screen text), which facilitates access to information in a non-linear, user-directed manner.

This feature enhances information retrieval and supports multiple means of representation by enabling students to locate and review specific content efficiently

Best Practices

Introduce Smart Search as a study tool in your orientation module.
Encourage students to use search to revisit terminology, locate definitions, or prep for assessments.
Use descriptive slide titles and speak clearly to improve search accuracy.

How To

You can add tutorials or prompts encouraging students to use Smart Search to revisit key terminology, review misunderstood segments, or locate references quickly.

From the Panopto video player window, students can click the "Search this recording" field on upper right corner and type in a keyword or phrase they want to search by. Their search results will display in the Results tab. They can narrow their search by selecting the "Search all" drop down menu and selecting a specific area to search in, such as the contents, captions, notes, etc.

The Panopto video player search in video option and results.

The Results tab will display a list of time-stamped results and to the left of each result, an icon indicator will denote how the keyword was conveyed (i.e. Automatic Speech Recognition (ASR), transcription, or a caption; Optical Character Recognition (OCR); slide content; discussion post or comment; notes; bookmarks; and Audio Descriptions).

Additional Resources:

How to Use Video Search

Notes

The Notes feature allows students to take timestamped notes, which are searchable and saved for future review.

UDL calls for providing options for comprehension and executive function. Research supports the use of annotation and note-taking tools for knowledge organization and metacognition.

This fosters metacognition and supports executive function, allowing students to track understanding and engage in reflective learning.

Best Practices

Demonstrate note-taking in the first lecture or a course demo video.
Use prompts within videos to cue students to jot down key points.
Suggest using notes collaboratively in study groups or discussions.

How To

Include strategies in your Panopto resources encouraging students to timestamp notes, summarize content, or add reflective prompts for personal learning connections.

Learners can access the Notes feature from the Panopto Video Player window by selecting the Notes tab from left-hand navigation. As students watch a video they can type a note and hit enter to add their note. Notes will be time-stamped along with the part of the video that corresponds with it.

Additional Resources:

How to Take Notes

Video Playback Options

Instructors should promote playback speed controls for learner autonomy. Playback controls give users control over video speed, allowing them to slow down or speed up playback.

Providing adjustable rates of information processing supports learners with varied cognitive speeds and auditory processing needs.

Respects individual processing speeds and promotes learner autonomy. Slower speeds aid comprehension for complex content; faster speeds allow review of familiar material.

Best Practices

Highlight playback speed control in course instructions.
Recommend that students adjust speed during exam review or technical lectures.
Reassure students that changing speed doesn't reduce content quality.

How To

Highlight playback speed options to empower students to review complex content slowly or skim familiar material quickly, aligning with self-regulated learning practices.

Learners can adjust the default 1x playback speed of a video by clicking the gear icon on lower right corner of the viewer controls and select "Speed." Here they can change the speed from 2x, 1.75x, 1.5x, 1.25x, 1x, 0.75x, or 0.5x increments.

Panopto viewer playback speed option.

Additional Resources:

Learn About the Features of the Embedded Video Viewer
Learn About the Features of the Video Viewer

Keyboard Shortcuts

Instructors can showcase keyboard shortcuts to support motor and cognitive access. Keystroke commands allow for accessible and efficient video navigation.

Keyboard shortcuts enhance navigation efficiency and are vital for learners who use assistive technologies or experience motor challenges. The use of keyboard shortcuts increases usability for users with motor disabilities or who use screen readers, and offers all users a faster navigation option.

Best Practices

Post or link to a Panopto keyboard shortcuts list in your course materials.
Include instructions in accessibility statements or orientation modules.
Consider assigning a short tutorial quiz to familiarize students.

How To

Create a quick-access guide to essential Panopto shortcuts, perhaps as a downloadable PDF or short embedded walkthrough video. You can also link to Panopto's guide/article Learn About Keyboard Shortcuts for Video Viewing.

Additional Resources:

Learn About Accessibility Features

Embed Quizzes and Discussions

Panopto allows instructors to insert quiz questions or discussion prompts within videos.

Embedding interactions aligns with UDL’s principle of providing multiple means of engagement. Frequent, low-stakes assessments are shown to reduce student anxiety and improve learning outcomes.

Promotes active engagement and formative assessment. Interactivity enhances comprehension and allows instructors to check for understanding in real time.

Best Practices

Use low-stakes questions to prompt reflection or self-assessment.
Include feedback on quiz questions to reinforce learning.
Space questions out to encourage sustained attention.

How To

Consider using embedded quizzes to break up long lectures or to prompt reflection before major assignments. You can also use response data to identify concepts needing review in live sessions or discussion boards.

Review our Panopto in Canvas - Create Video Quiz for complete steps on how to add a quiz to a Panopto video.

Additional Resources:

Download Options and Offline Access

Instructors can students to download videos for offline viewing. Offline access supports the UDL principle of providing multiple means of access and sustains equitable participation in asynchronous learning.

This option is important because it increases access for students with limited internet bandwidth or inconsistent connectivity.

Best Practices

Inform students if download is enabled for your course.
Recommend using downloads during travel, power outages, or limited data access.

How To

Encourage students who travel, commute, or have inconsistent connectivity to download recordings ahead of time. Include download instructions in the course welcome message or orientation module.

Instructors can enable downloads of videos at either the folder level or individual video level from the Settings page of either the folder or specific video(s). To allow students to download a video for offline viewing, you can select either "Authenticated users with access" or "All users with access." Please see the guide How to Enable Podcast (MP4) Downloads in the Viewer per Folder or Video.

Once you have enabled downloading of a Panopto video, students will be able to access the "Download podcast" option from more actions drop-down menu in the video viewer as shown below.

The Download podcast option from Panopto video viewer window.

Additional Resources:

<< Return to Panopto - Resources, Video Uploading and Storage

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