Teaching in Kiewit Hall

A Quick-Start Guide

This quick-start guide includes information, resources, and contacts for support as you prepare to teach in the College of Engineering’s newest building, Kiewit Hall. The Engineering and Computing Education Core (ECEC) is a core facility in the College of Engineering at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln that contributes to the College’s mission of providing excellent post-secondary education and is committed to facilitating pedagogical exploration of and innovation with educational technology in distance classrooms and other unique contexts. This quick-start guide will introduce you to the technology in Kiewit Hall’s new classrooms and help prepare you to teach in these rooms. You can access the PDF version of this guide here. See below on how to contact the ECEC team for further support.

Pedagogical Practices in KH A235

This unique classroom was designed with a technological setup to support and promote active learning and group collaboration in the classroom.

Active learning is highly beneficial towards academic performance and engagement for students in STEM disciplines. Collaborative Learning, which supports joint meaning-making by students, also provides strong learning experiences for students. In regard to technology, the configuration of active learning classrooms influences student perception and student engagement.

This resource provides initial guidance and support to help get you started so you can utilize KH 235 with evidence-based pedagogical practices, including specific guidance on using the TV monitor carts spread across the classroom space for use by instructors and students.

Additionally, instructors who currently teach in KH 235 can use this working document to share any comments and/or suggestions based on your experiences teaching in KH 235, as you get to know the classroom. We highly value your experiences as we explore the opportunities and limitations of the classroom this semester, and thank you for being among the very first instructors to explore using KH 235!

If you would like to have further discussions, questions, or concerns on the pedagogical possibilities of this classroom, please reach out to Raycelle Garcia, Instructional Designer (rgarcia25@unl.edu).

Additionally, we have provided a short training video highlighting the basics of teaching in Kiewit Hall, which can be found here:

For individual support and questions, see our contact information below.

What Technology will be in Kiewit Hall Classrooms?
  • For a detailed guide on using the technology available in Kiewit Hall classrooms, please see our Teaching in Kiewit Hall Technology Guide.
  • To share your teaching content with students, you will be able to log in to the room PC, bring your own device and connect using either an HDMI input or Airtame, and use a document camera.
  • A Wacom tablet will be provided with a stylus, for use in annotating content when using the classroom PC and serving as the monitor for the instructor.
  • Rooms will also have two confidence monitors on carts for instructors to use to view the shared content.
How can I Prepare to Teach in a Kiewit Hall Classroom?
  • If you are planning to use the room PC:
    • Make sure you know your TrueYou credentials (these should be the same credentials used to log into Canvas or other university services). You will use your university credentials to log into the classroom PC.
      • Some PCs may have access to a guest account that allows an instructor to log in without their credentials. However, current policy prevents PCs with guest accounts from accessing any licensed software like MatLab, Revit, etc. Accessing these software programs will require an authenticated user to log in.
    • Ensure you are prepared to log into all required services, including:
      • Canvas
      • Office 365
      • OneDrive
  • If you are planning to bring your own device:
    • Make sure Airtame is installed on your device prior to coming to class. You can find a link to download Airtame here: https://airtame.com/download/ 
    • If you do not intend to use Airtame and your device does not have an HDMI output, you will need to bring an appropriate adaptor. Most instructors will need a USB-C to HDMI adaptor.

You should confirm your device is connected to EDUROAM. There is no wired network connection available at instructor stations.

What Should I Bring with Me to the Room?
  • Any devices or adaptors you will need to present content, depending on whether you intend to use the room PC or bring your own device (see the How Can I Prepare to Teach in Kiewit Hall section of this guide).
  • Bring the device you use for Dual Authentication through TrueYou to the classroom.

 Pedagogical Tip: Having a backup option for sharing your content, such as a thumb drive, is good practice to avoid problems logging into the network or other university services.

How Do I Connect to a Distance Classroom?

See below for a table of classrooms in Kiewit Hall and their configurations.

  • For a detailed guide on using the technology available in Kiewit Hall classrooms, including using the Distance Conferencing features, please see our Teaching in Kiewit Hall Technology Guide.
  • You can connect to another distance classroom via Zoom by logging in to the room PC.
    • All distance classes must have a Zoom meeting created prior to the start of class. Instructors are responsible for creating their own Zoom ID. The meeting ID must be provided to the College’s AV support prior to the start of the semester. You can submit your meeting ID via this Qualtrics form:
      • https://ssp.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_6PAg73OoARf41h4
    • You will need to make sure someone in the connecting distance classroom connects the computer in that classroom to the meeting. A student support technician will be available to assist with connections for scheduled distance classes.
  • A picture-in-picture feature will allow instructors to choose and control how to share content, rather than relying on a control room technician to start and stop the shared content.
    • Instructors can display both the classroom camera and content via a second source at the same time, either through your own device (connected through HDMI or Airtame), or the document camera.
    • Instructors can display either the classroom camera or content from the second source exclusively.

Kiewit Hall distance classrooms continue to be supported by College of Engineering AV staff. However, they also offer the option of self-service capabilities for faculty and staff who need to make unscheduled connections or who prefer to operate the room autonomously. Sign up for an ECEC training to learn more.

CLASSROOMS IN KIEWIT HALL
All classrooms in Kiewit Hall are configured to serve as distance classrooms

Room Number Student Capacity Number of Cameras
A203 150 4
A211 80 4
A235 80 4
A249 120 4
A251/253 (Divisible) 60 6
A310 60 2
A410 60 2
A445 42 2
A510 30 2
A512 30 2
A541 42 2
A549 42 2

* There are two control rooms that serve all classrooms in Kiewit Hall, A201 and A523



For questions, contact:
Raycelle Garcia, MS | Instructional Designer, ECEC | rgarcia25@unl.edu
Cody Tienken | Learning Spaces Project Manager, ECEC | cody.tienken@unl.edu
Amie Sommers, PhD | Senior STEM Education Specialist, ECEC | asommers2@unl.edu
Tareq Daher, PhD | Director, ECEC | tdaher2@unl.edu 

For AV Support, contact:
Kiewit Hall room A201 | (402) 472-0700
PKI room 262 | (402) 554-2185