Zoom at JMU
We are pleased to announce that Zoom is now available and integrated with Canvas for teaching and learning! Zoom and Webex are the two synchronous conferencing platforms licensed by JMU for all faculty, staff, and students.
Zoom info on this page (select one to jump to that section):
- What do I need to know about Zoom right now?
- How do I launch a Zoom class meeting from Canvas?
- How do I create breakout room sessions in Zoom?
- What Zoom integration will my students see in Canvas?
- I'm entirely new to Zoom. Is there a Zoom course I can take?
- I've used Zoom before, but I have a few specific questions.
- What do I need to know about video configuration for different computer operating systems?
- What is Zoom-bombing?
What do I need to know about Zoom right now?
This page currently focuses on how to get up and running with Zoom through Canvas.
For general information about Zoom and its implementation across campus, please see below or refer to the Zoom page from JMU IT. More information about basic configuration and uses for Zoom that we want you to know at this time:
- JMU Libraries will provide training for teaching and learning with Zoom in the coming months. Visit our events calendar for up-to-date information on training and workshops.
- The maximum meeting size with the JMU educational license is 300 participants. If you require a webinar license for a larger number of participants, you must submit a request form through the IT Service Portal. JMU has a limited number of webinar licenses available, so please be thorough in stating your needs and why you believe a webinar license is required when you submit your request.
- If you need to use Zoom for meetings that include individually identifiable health information protected by the HIPAA Privacy Rule, submit a Technology Solution Request (TSR) through the IT Service Portal. Please include a detailed justification of why this is needed.
- Please report all Zoom questions including any issues with Zoom integration with Canvas through the IT Service Portal or by contacting the IT Help Desk at (540) 568-3555 or helpdesk@jmu.edu.
For additional information and helpful resources, please refer to the Zoom page from JMU IT.
How do I launch a Zoom class meeting from Canvas?
Step 1. Visit jmu-edu.zoom.us and sign in:
If you haven't used Zoom yet, you will activate your JMU Zoom for Education license with Zoom by going to jmu-edu.zoom.us and selecting Sign In - Configure Your Account. See the number 1 on the screenshot below. Sign in with your JMU eID, password, and Duo to use your Zoom account in Canvas.
If you already hold a Zoom license tied to your jmu.edu email, your profile and scheduled meetings will transfer to our enterprise license after you select Sign In from https://jmu-edu.zoom.us. See the number 1 on the screenshot below. If you purchased a yearly subscription, Zoom will email you directly with options for how they will provide you with a prorated refund. (Monthly subscriptions will not be refunded with prorated time.)
In both cases, a single login to https://jmu-edu.zoom.us should activate your JMU Zoom account within Canvas.
Step 2. Update your profile and adjust any settings on the JMU Zoom website:
Once you sign in, you may want to update your profile picture, name, title, etc. on the profile page of Zoom. You can also adjust many of your personal Zoom settings on this page (see the arrows on the screenshot below), including setting up virtual backgrounds, setting permissions for student sharing, close captioning, and setting up polls.
Step 3. Navigate to Your Canvas Course:
Once you have adjusted your profile information and checked your settings, you can navigate to your Canvas course. If you already had Canvas open, you may need to refresh your browser once for the new settings to become available. You will now notice that Zoom is available within your course on the left-hand menu.
Step 4. Schedule Your Class Meeting(s) From Canvas:
After navigating to Zoom from within your Canvas course, click on Schedule a New Meeting. See 2 and 3 on the screenshot below.
After you click on Schedule a New Meeting, a new window will open for you to add details for your course. If the class meeting will be recurring, you'll want to click the checkbox for Recurring Meeting and select the corresponding times for your course. See the arrow on the screenshot below.
If you scroll down to the bottom of that page, you'll notice a variety of settings for your course meeting. We recommend selecting Waiting Room, unchecking Enable join before host, and selecting Mute participants upon entry. See the arrows on the screenshot below. You will not need to select Only authenticated users can join as all of your students are already authenticated through their JMU eIDs. Once you are ready, click Save.
Optional: Editing Meetings and Adding Polls
Once you click Save, your course meeting will become available to both you and your students. You'll notice that there are several options: Delete this Meeting, Edit this Meeting, or Start this Meeting.
You may want to share Polls prior to class. See the arrows on the screenshot below. More information on Polls can be found on the Polling for meetings page from Zoom.
Step 5. Start Your Meeting:
When you are ready to start your meeting, go back to your Canvas course and click on the Zoom link on the left-hand menu in Canvas. You'll see all of your meetings within Zoom, including any meetings you may have not related this class (your students will not see the meetings not related to this class). If you only want to see the course meetings, use the checkbox to Show my course meetings only. When you are ready, you can click Start to begin your session. See 5 on the screenshot below.
After you click start, the Zoom website will launch and may ask you to download the Zoom application if you haven't done so in the past. To proceed, click Open zoom.us. See the arrow on the screenshot below.
Now you will see the actual Zoom program. Click Join with Computer Audio and you are ready to begin class. See the arrow on the screenshot below.
Optional: Recording and Retrieving Your Course Meetings
You may decide that you want to record your course meeting. The Record button is located in the menu bar at the bottom of the Zoom screen. There are two options when you click that button: Record on this Computer and Record to the Cloud. See 6 on the screenshot below. We highly recommend saving your recording to the cloud. This will allow you and your students to retrieve the recording within Canvas without you having to manually upload the video after the fact.
After class is over, if you leave some time for the video to process, you and your students will be able to access your recordings inside of Canvas within Zoom under the Cloud Recordings tab. See the arrow on the screenshot below.
How do I create breakout room sessions in Zoom?
Step 1. Configure your account, if necessary:
If you haven't used Zoom yet, first activate your JMU Zoom for Education license with Zoom by going to jmu-edu.zoom.us and selecting Sign In - Configure Your Account. Sign in with your JMU eID, password, and Duo to use your Zoom account in Canvas.
If you've already configured your account, move on to step 2, below.
Step 2. Activate Breakout Rooms in your account settings:
Go to your Zoom Settings, then go to In Meeting (Advanced) and toggle ON the “Allow host to split meeting participants into separate, smaller rooms” setting and check the “Allow host to assign participants to breakout rooms when scheduling” setting, as illustrated in the screenshot below:
Step 3. Decide which type of breakout room you want:
The JMU-licensed Zoom account offers two options for breakout rooms:
- Random assignment of students to breakout rooms (see instructions below)
- Pre-assignment of students to breakout rooms (see instructions below)
How to randomly assign students to breakout rooms:
First, ensure your students are using their JMU accounts in Zoom. For breakout rooms to work, students must be using Zoom with their dukes.jmu.edu email address.
Then, create or schedule a Zoom meeting. Click the Breakout Rooms option, available in the control panel of the host (most likely you, the instructor). Enter the number of breakout rooms you want to create. You will see automatic or manual options for the creation of breakout rooms. Choose Automatically if you want the breakout rooms to be created randomly and automatically, then click the Create Breakout Rooms button, as in the screenshot below:
Optional: You can make a Teaching Assistant or Team Teacher a Host. To pass host control to another participant, you will click Manage in the host controls. This will open the participants list. Hover your mouse over the name of the participant you want to make the host and click More. Click Make Host.
Once you're viewing the Breakout Rooms panel, you will be able to assign participants to rooms and set a timer for breakout rooms. You can also Recreate breakout rooms, or Add new rooms. See screenshot below:
How to pre-assign students to breakout rooms:
NOTE: If you have scheduled recurring meetings, pre-assigned breakout rooms will only work if applied to all meetings in the recurrence. You cannot edit a single meeting in the recurrence and apply a unique pre-assignment.
To pre-assign students to breakout rooms, first download this template from Zoom. Use it to create a csv file with your class roster (using only @dukes.jmu.edu accounts). Then, create or schedule a Zoom meeting. In Meeting Options, check the “Breakout Room pre-assign” option. Select Import from csv. Upload the csv file you prepared. See screenshot below:
The screen will then look like the below screenshot. Click Save.
When the meeting starts, activate the breakout rooms with the Control Panel. The breakout rooms will have pre-assigned participants in place. You can always assign new participants or non pre-assigned participants to existing rooms, as in the screenshot below:
In the middle of the breakout rooms, you can also Broadcast a message to all and set a timer to end the session.
What Zoom integration will my students see in Canvas?
You can see what your students will see by going to Settings and then clicking on Student View on the right-hand side of the screen. See the arrow in the screenshot below.
If you then navigate back to the Zoom page in Canvas, you'll see what the student sees, which will be a button to Join the meeting. See the arrow in the screenshot below. The student will also have access to Cloud Recordings from the same page. Click Leave Student View to return to the instructor's view within Canvas.
I'm entirely new to Zoom. Is there a Zoom course I can take?
JMU faculty and students have access to a variety of training videos from LinkedIn Learning (formerly Lynda.com), which JMU Libraries subscribes to.
You are encouraged to watch the "Learning Zoom" course featured in Market Watch, Inc., Fortune, Forbes, and Entrepreneur. Course instructor Garrick Chow will show you how to schedule, moderate, and participate in Zoom meetings. Garrick begins by showing how to set up your Zoom account and adjust audio and video settings. Next, he walks through joining and participating in meetings scheduled by others. You will learn how to use various options during sessions, such as adjusting views, muting your microphone, turning your video camera on and off, and sharing your screen. Finally, you'll learn how to host your own Zoom meetings and webinars, including scheduling and adjusting moderator settings to record sessions.
This online course is 1 hour and 21 minutes long. You will need to log in with your JMU credentials to access it.
JMU Libraries will also be providing additional training for teaching and learning with Zoom in the coming months. Visit our events calendar for up-to-date information on training and workshops.
I've used Zoom before, but I have a few specific questions:
If you’ve already used Zoom but want to know something specific about one of the features, we recommend starting with some of the most frequently requested training pages from Zoom.com:
Top 10 training resources from Zoom.com:
- Quick start guide for new users - Learn the first steps to create and use your Zoom account.
- Frequently asked questions - Find answers to some common questions asked by Zoom users.
- Live training webinars - Attend free and interactive live training webinars. Offered by Zoom daily.
- Joining a meeting - Learn how to join a meeting across all of the Zoom platforms.
- Joining a test meeting - Learn how to join a test meeting in Zoom to test your audio and video.
- Virtual backgrounds - Learn how to add an image or video as your background in a Zoom meeting. Find JMU-themed backgrounds here.
- Scheduling meetings - Learn how to schedule a meeting across the Zoom platforms.
- Inviting others to join a meeting - Learn how to invite others to join your scheduled or in-progress Zoom meeting.
- Sharing your screen - Learn how to share your screen during a Zoom meeting.
- Managing breakout rooms - Learn how to split the participants of the meeting into these separate sessions automatically or manually, and can switch between sessions at any time.
What do I need to know about video configuration for different computer operating systems?
Zoom provides information on how to configure video settings for Mac, Windows, Linux, Android, and iOS. Scroll down on this page and choose your operating system for Zoom video configuration instructions.
What is Zoom-Bombing?
As the word "Zoom" became synonymous with video conferencing, a new trend of breaking into synchronous meetings has also grown. This is now commonly referred to as "zoom-bombing." The best way to prevent this is to make sure that your meeting has a password and that both the session ID number and the password are never shared on social media. Learn more about zoom-bombing in "‘Zoombies’ Take Over Online Classrooms," an April 2020 article from Inside Higher Ed.
More questions?
Please report all questions including any issues with Zoom integration with Canvas, through the IT Service Portal or by contacting the IT Help Desk at (540) 568-3555 or helpdesk@jmu.edu.
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