Help & Resources: Engaging Students with Multimedia Discussions

This article provides guidance for exploring OIT-supported tools that support multimedia discussion and student engagement activities. For some instructors, a simple starting point is to use Canvas Discussions with captioned audio or video responses. Canvas supports multimedia discussions and can deliver auto‑generated captions to assist with the delivery of accessible content.

OIT Instructional Technologists are available to help you evaluate tools that support your teaching strategies. Schedule a consultation. As you review options for creating and facilitating multimedia discussion, consider how you can ensure you create accessible content so it is available and functional for all students.

Explore Supported Options

A variety of applications supported by OIT provide capabilities to support interactive and multimedia-rich instructional activities. Regardless of the tool selected, instructors should ensure that video and audio content includes captions and that shared course materials meet digital accessibility requirements. Automatically generated captions should be reviewed for accuracy whenever possible.

  • Canvas offers the ability to deliver a video‑based discussion board by using Canvas Discussions and directing students to record or upload videos using the Rich Content Editor. Note: Students may upload videos to Canvas without impacting course storage limits. Instructors who post videos to Canvas should be aware of course storage limits (2GB per course) and are encouraged to host videos in Panopto. Canvas Discussions are particularly well suited for:

    • Support for text-based and video-based discussion
    • Simple setup in a tool students are already familiar with
    • Includes accessibility features that support text-based and video-based discussions, including Immersive Reader and captioned video content
  • The Microsoft Education integration in Canvas enables instructors to connect Microsoft Teams classes with Canvas courses and leverage Teams conversations, channels, meetings, assignments, and Flip video recording activities alongside Canvas course content and grading workflows. Teams can be used alongside Canvas to support communication, discussion, collaboration, and video-based engagement. Flip activities are available through Microsoft Education and Teams assignments, while standard Teams conversations and channel posts can also support text, audio, and video interactions. Microsoft Education is particularly well suited for:
    • Teams conversations, channel posts, and Flip activities can support both synchronous and asynchronous engagement.
    • Synchronous meetings and recorded sessions
    • Text-based chat for discussion, office hours, etc.
    • Microsoft Teams and Flip support auto-generated captions and transcripts for recorded and shared video content, helping instructors create more accessible multimedia learning experiences.
  • Panopto supports lecture‑based and instructor‑mediated uses. It supports embedded quiz questions, time‑stamped student comments, and links to external feedback tools such as Microsoft Forms. Panopto is particularly well suited for:
    • Student‑to‑instructor interaction within recorded lectures
    • Lecture recording and secure video hosting
    • Auto‑generated, editable captions for accessibility

The table below outlines more details about possible tools that you may want to consider for a variety of functions. 

Instructional Need/Goal

Supported Tools 

Multimedia presentation creation (images, videos, documents, audio)

 

 
  • Use PowerPoint to create multimedia presentations that include images, videos, and audio narration. These presentations can then be shared through Canvas, Teams, or uploaded to Panopto or Stream for broader access and playback. Panopto, and Microsoft Teams support recording within their applications. 
  • Panopto and Stream are strong options for recording and sharing lectures. PowerPoint can also be used to create narrated slide decks, which can then be uploaded to Canvas, Panopto, or Stream. These tools support asynchronous access.

 

Multimedia discussions (discussions including audio, text, and/or video)

 

Recommended – Canvas Discussion Boards: Canvas supports text-based discussions as well as audio and video responses from students and instructors, making it the recommended starting point for most multimedia discussion activities because it is integrated directly into the learning environment students already use. Canvas also supports automated captioning capabilities for media recorded within the native media recorder, allowing instructors and students to create more accessible video discussions.

Automatically generated captions should always be reviewed before publishing. Instructors creating discussion prompts or supporting materials in Canvas are encouraged to use Canvas Accessibility Checkers to identify common accessibility issues before publishing content.

Additional Supported Tools:  

  • Within Canvas, instructors and students can also record Panopto videos within the Rich Content Editor to create captioned videos in the Canvas space. This strategy requires an assignment folder in Panopto to be available so students can create videos in the class.
  • Stream supports timestamped comments, transcripts, and captioned video playback that can facilitate feedback and discussion around recorded content.
  • Instructors and students can record Flip videos in Teams for Classroom, but students cannot comment on each other’s flip videos.  
  • Using the “record a video” feature in response to a Teams for Classroom post allows students and instructors to post videos and get text or video comments. These short video responses can support quick engagement activities but are not designed for graded multimedia discussion assignments.

Student collaboration and co-creation

 
  • Microsoft Teams and OneDrive support real-time collaboration, allowing students to co-author documents or presentations. 
  • Canvas also supports group assignments and collaborative spaces, making it possible for students to work together on shared projects.

Canvas Integration (Tools that support grading or assignment creation in Canvas)

Low-stakes engagement activities (e.g., reflections, icebreakers)

 
  • Canvas Quizzes and Discussions can also be used for low-stakes activities that encourage participation.
  • Teams supports both structured and informal discussion through channels, posts, meetings, video messages, reactions, polling, and collaborative spaces. 

Summary of Capabilities

This table quickly highlights the main features related to multimedia and student engagement based on common needs for interactive, media-rich discussion-type activities.

Tool

Summary of Capabilities

Canvas

• Video recording (storage limits apply for instructors)
• Discussion capabilities using text, audio, or video
• Native Canvas gradebook integration
• Auto‑captioning available when media is recorded or embedded using supported tools (e.g., Panopto)

Panopto

• Video recording
• Timestamped video commenting
• Discussion and engagement features (comments, quizzes)
• Video sharing and hosting with access controls
• Canvas gradebook integration
• Auto‑generated captions with instructor editing

Microsoft Clipchamp & Stream

• Video recording
• Timestamped video commenting (Stream)
• Video sharing and hosting
• Auto‑captioning

Flip via Microsoft Teams (via Microsoft Education)

• Video recording
• Video sharing and hosting
• Canvas gradebook integration
• Auto‑captioning

Microsoft Teams (via Microsoft Education or separately)

• Video recording
• Discussion capabilities through posts and channels
• Video sharing and hosting
• Captions and transcripts for live and asynchronous access 

Microsoft PowerPoint

• Video and audio recording within presentations

Adobe Express

• Video recording and media creation
• Video sharing and hosting
• Canvas gradebook integration (assignment‑based workflows)

Accessibility Comparison: Captioning and Transcription

Regardless of the tool you select to facilitate interaction in your course, ensure it also supports accessibility for all students. See below for a summary of captioning and transcription capabilities by tool. Captioning, transcription, and editing capabilities may change as vendors update their platforms. Instructors should review generated captions for accuracy before using media in instructional activities.

Tool Supports Captioning Allows Caption Editing

Transcription Support
Canvas Media Recorder Yes Yes

Limited
Panopto Yes Yes Yes
Teams Yes Yes (recordings) Yes
Stream Yes Yes (recordings) Yes
Flip Yes Limited Yes

Get Help

  • OIT Instructional Technologists are available to help you evaluate tools that support your teaching strategies. Schedule a consultation

Additional Resources

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