After logging in to your assigned Centra domain choose the Ongoing tab and locate and the event you wish to lead. Click the Lead link under the event to begin the event. If this is the first time you are connecting to Centra with your computer, Centra will need to download and install the conferencing software. This will occur differently depending on the browser you use.

Once you are connected, the graphic interface for Centra Symposium will open. Your name will appear as a presenter. Reid is leading the event at left and no students have logged in to view the whiteboard. As students log in, their names appear in the Participants window.

Beginning the session

The session does not automatically begin once the presenter arrives. The presenter must click the green light BEGIN Session button at the top right of the screen. Until this button is clicked, the session has not officially started and everyone has much the same privileges. Once the session is begun, the Presenter has control of the audio and visual environment.

Also, any prearranged recording of the event will begin and end with the session. Recordings can only be made once per day due to current limitations, so be careful when starting a test session to be sure that you do not have any sessions later that day that you will miss being able to record.

Talking

Press and hold the Ctrl key on your keyboard while you are speaking. If you plan on speaking for an extended period of time, click once on the lock icon just below the file menu item. This is called the Lock to Talk button and let's you speak hands-free until you click the lock button again.

Letting others talk

As a leader you must grant speaking privileges to participants. This is accomplished by clicking beside the participant's name in the microphone column. A single click puts a small microphone icon beside their name. With this icon, they may interact orally and visually with everyone in the event until you remove their microphone with a click identical to that which you used to give them the privilege. If you want everyone to be silent, click the Clear microphone button just below the View menu. Your class won't be able to speak until you give them back their microphones.

Calling on students

All students have the ability to raise their hands to signal their desire to speak. A number appears beside their names indicating the chronology of raised hands in the class. Therefore, you always know who has had their hand up the longest or who had the first question. The instructor may lower one hand at a time or all hands at once. To lower one hand, click in the hand column beside the participant's name. To lower all hands at once, click the Lower hands button at the top of the screen.

Signals from your class

Notice that the icons at the top of the window are different for your participants than for you (Figure 1). CentraOne has some built in feedback mechanisms for your students. When they click the green checkmark button, a green check appears by their name in the participant list. Clicking the red X button icon places a red X by their name. A tally of all the checks and X's appears at the bottom of the participant list. This way, you'll know immediately how many of your students agree and how many disagree with what you said. Students can also indicate laughter with the smiling-face button and applause with the clapping-hands button. A single click on your Clear checks and X's button will wipe these clean.

Collecting Feedback Your students are also able to send you feedback concerning the pacing and clarity of your instruction. At right, a student has selected Send Feedback from their Tools menu and is informing you that the instruction is OK.

Occasionally, you'll want your students to be able to break out into small groups. CentraOne lets you create assigned or random groups and then allows you to visit each group individually much as you would in a traditional classroom. When you're ready, a single click puts them back in the main room again. To create groups make sure that the class is In Session. Select Breakout under the Tools menu (or click the 4-arrows icon). When prompted, create the number of breakout rooms you want and either let CentraOne randomly assign students to groups or drag and drop students into the desired group. Drag the student's name into the folder representing the appropriate group and release. The student's name will be listed below the group folder and he/she will be able to see the names of all those in the group. When you click the Start button the group members will be able to interact in group-fashion without interference from other groups. You can visit whichever room you wish from the Go menu. When you select Breakout and then Stop, everyone is placed back in the main session and the class continues.

Granting Presenter Status

From time to time you may wish to give the control of the class to a student, perhaps during a presentation or demonstration. While you remain, as always, the ultimate control in the session, granting Presenter privileges to a student enables him/her to do many of the things you do as leader: control student microphones, lower hands, erase checks and X's, navigate the agenda, create and assign breakout groups, and share applications. To grant Presenter privileges to a student, right click the student's name and select Promote [name of student] to Co-Presenter. The students name will be removed from the class listing and placed underneath yours to signify this change in status. When you wish to remove these privileges, right click the student's name and select Demote [name of presenter].

Application Sharing CentraOne also enables you to share your applications in an active session. After you have begun the session, launch your application. Select the icon showing a hand holding a green folder at the top. Click the Host button to select the application you wish to share (above there are two applications that may be shared, Desktop and Adobe Photoshop). Next, select your name from the Host being viewed menu. This let's CentraOne know who is sharing the application from the list of presenters. After the application sharing has started, any students with microphone privileges will be able to interact with you in the application. For example, in Microsoft Word, students may type and delete words, make tables, and open new files. Application sharing ends when you select another menu item or agenda item.

Chatting

You may also use the chat tool (the icon with the keyboard and text bubble, second from the left). Chat allows you to send and receive text messages to individual students or all students. This functionality can be very useful: Your audio is not working. Have you run the audio wizard? Text messages may also be sent in the Whiteboard environment, but are seen by everyone. Also, students can send public messages or private messages to you (the chat tool changes color when you get a private message). The chat will not open automatically, however, and you'll need to remember to monitor it from time to time.

Modifying Your Agenda Once the Session Has Begun

There are two ways to bring in materials during a session. You can pull in PowerPoint files by clicking the Import button at the bottom left of the screen. When prompted, just browse to the location of the PowerPoint file and CentraOne will upload them to the server and place them in the agenda. They are ready for immediate use.

Also, CentraOne allows you to upload gifs and jpeg files to your whiteboard as backgrounds during session. To do this, choose the leftmost whiteboard tool (the icon with an open folder) (Figure 7). Again you will need to browse to the location of your file. The picture will appear on the whiteboard and can be drawn on by you and students. If you choose, you may snap shot your new picture to the agenda by clicking the second button from the left in the whiteboard icons (it appears just to the right of the load image tool as a floppy disk). You'll be asked to name the snapshot and it will be placed permanently in the agenda. Any whiteboard may be sent to the agenda in similar fashion and used for later reference.