This fall we are celebrating “Tech-sgiving” by highlighting some of the technology tools that we’re most grateful for over the past year. Some of these tools are innovative, some are time-saving, some help promote digital equity, but all of them have made a positive impact on how we teach, how we work, or both!
Pronto
Pronto is a communication hub created for the everyday user. It connects people via chat and video, so they can learn faster, work smarter, and communicate seamlessly with each other or their instructor through real-time text messaging in Canvas or the Pronto smartphone app.
“Pronto ROCKS! This semester I have used the integrated Canvas tool Pronto. Students like to use their phones to engage with me as the instructor and with other students. At the beginning of the semester, I had students download the Pronto app to their phones and we all made sure the system worked by instant messaging everyone in class. Throughout the semester I have sent quick messages to students from my phone in Pronto as reminders and sometimes with fun GIFs of encouragement. Students have private messaged me through Pronto to ask quick questions and verify information I might have missed on Canvas. Pronto is a fantastic alternative to email!”
- Joyce Marie Brusasco, Family and Consumer Sciences, Academic Technology Fellow
Learn more on our Pronto page.
Adobe Sign
Adobe Sign is a cloud-based e-Signature service that lets you send, sign, track, and manage signature processes using a browser or mobile device. Documents can be sent instantly to receive a quick turnaround on required signatures.
“I am most grateful for Adobe Sign. Getting signatures with this great tool has made my job easier this past year. An efficient and time-saving tool!”
- Yolanda Avila, Administrator to the Directors
Learn more on our Adobe Sign page.
Captioning in Adobe Premiere Pro
Captioning in Adobe Premiere Pro
Adobe Premiere Pro is a video-editing application that lets users create professional video content and is available to all faculty, staff, and students along with the many other Adobe applications that are part of the Adobe Creative Cloud.
“All of the video content we create has to include captioning to meet ADA requirements, but there has never been an efficient way to generate these caption files. Automatic captions generated by YouTube can be edited, but the caption interface is difficult to navigate and makes editing a time-consuming process. Now, Adobe Premiere Pro has included captioning as part of the workflow. Premiere uses Adobe’s Sensei AI to create captions right on the editing timeline with an interface that allows you to easily update, correct, and export the caption file with the finished video. It can even identify multiple speaking voices! Having captioning as part of the native editing workflow means we can incorporate accessibility standards from the very beginning in a way that also saves time.”
- Tim Aguirre, Marketing & Media Services Lead
Learn more about Premiere Pro on our Adobe Creative Cloud page.
EquatIO – Accessibility for STEM and More!
Another tool we want to highlight this Techs-giving is EquatIO. This cross-platform software tool helps make STEM content accessible and includes an equation editor that creates and remediates STEM content. Some of the features include speak, type, handwrite, mobile using camera capture, and screenshot reader. EquatIO gives you content that looks correct and reads aloud with Assistive Technology.
Learn more on our EquatIO page.
Course Accessibility Report – New Ally feature in Canvas
And finally, this Tech-sgiving we’re grateful for the Course Accessibility Report in Canvas Ally. The Course Accessibility Report gives you an overview of the accessibility of your course, including guidance like “easiest issues to fix” and “fix low scoring content." The report also lists all the content within that course and displays the Canvas Ally dial for each item.
Learn more on our Canvas Course Accessibility Report page.
Have a tool or application you're grateful for this Tech-sgiving? Drop us a line and let us know!
