How to use Whiteboard.Chat in a Virtual Classroom with an LMS?

At its most basic level, a virtual classroom has three key components:

• An online learning management system (LMS), that takes care of the logistics, classroom management, student management, attendance, assignment submission, creation or import of teaching materials, conducting tests and quizzes, grading and student progress management among others
• A communication platform where teachers and students can interact with each other over audio-video and text-based chat messaging
• A whiteboard to deliver teaching material, to keep students engaged and to observe if they are making progress

In this article we will briefly go through how Whiteboard.Chat works in conjunction with some of the most widely used LMS and Communication Platforms to teach a live class remotely.

Prepare for Live Class: Use your Google Classroom, Schoology or Canvas material with Whiteboard.Chat

• If you already have material (pdf, slide deck, worksheets etc.) prepared and saved at your LMS class folder, please login and download it to your computer so that you can use it with Whiteboard.chat
• Whiteboard.chat allows you to upload your material once, make copies of your boards if you teach same class to multiple groups of students
• Here is a detailed step-by-step article that may help you with preparing for a live class using Whiteboard.Chat
• Before you launch your video/audio conferencing using Zoom or Microsoft team, prepare your instructor Whiteboard
• Point your desktop/laptop’s browser to https://www.whiteboard.chat
• Select “Start Drawing”
• Select “Start Teaching”
• You are now on a board that says “Instructor Board”. You may want to give it a name like “Math Class 10 am”
• Upload your worksheets, PDFs, images or other material that you wish to teach on your instructor board. We have a full set of drawing tools, math symbols, alphabets, syllaboard, manipulatives, etc available for you to create your own teaching material at the Whiteboard.
• You can check out our FAQs on getting started.

Start Teaching a Live Class: Launch Zoom or Microsoft Team for Communication and Teach using Whiteboard.Chat

• You are now ready to launch your Zoom or Microsoft Team video conferencing
• Here is an article that can help you on how to use Whiteboard.chat with Zoom (and the same instructions are valid when you use Microsoft Teams)
• You are now ready to invite your students at Whiteboard. Click on “Invite” on the upper right corner. Copy the link from the pop-up window.
• You have multiple options to send this link to all of your class students at the same time.
• You can always share the link at Zoom or Microsoft Team’s Chat, however, if you expect your students to continue to work on their boards even after the class has ended, in an asynchronous mode, then they need access to this link after the Zoom/Team session has ended, and hence you are better off sharing it through your LMS.

(a) If you are using Schoology, here is a screenshot where you can paste the link as an “Update” or as a “Discussion” to your Group

(b) If you are using Google Classroom, you can paste the link to your classroom stream

(C) If you are using Canvas, you can share it under “Announcements” or “Discussions” associated with your class

• Now you are ready to teach as your students join at the whiteboard.
• Here are a few articles that can help you remote teach effectively using Whiteboard.Chat
• How to use Whiteboard.Chat for distance teaching
• Whiteboard.Chat for remote teaching

After Class: Student Access to Whiteboard.chat, along with Google Classroom, Canvas or Schoology

• You may have assigned worksheets to students that they are expected to continue to work even after the live class has ended and you as a teacher have closed Zoom/Team video conferencing and have closed your browser window for Whiteboard.Chat
• If you have posted your Whiteboard.Chat invite link in your LMS’s chat/discussion/announcement forum, then students will have access to their boards even after the live class has ended
• Here is a step-by-step instruction on how both teacher and student can continue to work on their whiteboards asynchronously.

In summary, Whiteboard.Chat works seamlessly with any Learning Management System and any Communication Platform. The key purpose of Whiteboard.Chat is to augment delivery of teaching material by simulating an in-class learning experience but virtually.

As always, if you run into any issues, or have any questions on how your specific Learning Management System can be used with Whiteboard.Chat and Zoom/Teams please contact us at feedback@whiteboard.chat.