Providing CART for Web Conferencing Events

When hosting events that have a webconferencing component, accessibility and disability accommodations need to be considered. This page will provide information on how to request CART accommodations for events,  how to implement captioning within a virtual room, and how to embed the transcript for recorded events. In particular, this page will go over the captioning features within Zoom and how to incorporate the captions on Ensemble.

Requesting a CART transcriptionist

First, determine if the event needs CART. More information on when to provide disability accommodations can be found by visiting ASL Interpreting Services / CART. If CART is needed, an outside vendor/transcriptionist will need to be booked. Be sure to test with the transcriptionist ahead of time and check if they have provided captioning for the selected platform (Zoom). When using these platforms through Syracuse University, a host can invite the transcriptionist to their meeting as a guest, however the transcriptionist may still need to configure the platform on their device. Below are some vendors that are able to provide remote services. 

Configure Captioning for a Zoom meeting

If a Zoom account has not been configured, please view Zoom at Syracuse University for more help and documentation. Before creating a meeting, you should also view the Answers page on Securing Zoom Meetings.

The following sections will go over the procedures of creating a meeting with captions enabled. 

Check Meeting Settings

Before starting or scheduling a meeting, the User's settings need to enable captioning. 

1. Sign in to the Zoom web portal: syracuseuniversity.zoom.us
2. In the navigation panel, click Settings.
3. Click the Meeting tab.
   
4. Under Meeting (Advanced), verify that closed captioning is enabled.
5. A second prompt will ask to confirm, select Turn On
6. Below Closed captioning, there is also an option for Save Captions.  This allows participants to also save the captions.
   

Check Recording Settings 

If the video is being saved and posted elsewhere, it is a good idea to also check the recording settings.

1. Sign in to the Zoom web portal: syracuseuniversity.zoom.us
2. In the navigation panel, click Settings.
3. Click the Recording tab.
4. Make sure the settings for Local recording and Cloud recording are enabled to the user's preference.

Schedule a Meeting

Meetings can be scheduled in two ways: via the Zoom web portal or via the Zoom app.

 If you need more help to create a meeting, please visit the Hosting a Zoom Meeting section on Zoom at Syracuse University.

Invite the Transcriptionist

If the meeting is scheduled ahead of time, a guest URL is available that can be shared with the transcriptionist. 

Start Closed Captioning in a Meeting

These instructions can also be found on Zoom's Help Page.

1. Click the Closed Caption button on the toolbar.
2.  Select Assign a Participant to Type.
   
3.  In the Participant Panel, find the transcriptionist.
4.  Hover the mouse over their name, and select the More option.
5. Select Assign to Type Closed Caption.
6. Next to the Closed Caption button, there will now be an Up Arrow that allows participants to 
   1. show/hide captioning.
   2. view the full transcript.
   3.  change their subtitle settings.

Record the Meeting

If the meeting needs to be recorded and posted elsewhere, take the following steps. 

1. In the meeting, select the Record button on the toolbar.
   
2.  Choose to record to your local device or on the cloud. NOTE:
   
   1. Recording cannot be done simultaneously on both.
   2. SU users are limited to 500MB of cloud storage.
3.  Use the Pause/Stop button on the toolbar or the upper left corner to control the recording.
4. When the meeting ends, the recording will be processed.
5. Recordings will vary based on the options the user selects under the Recording tab in their Zoom Web-Portal Settings.

The following table will explain how to access the recording and captions based on which method was used:

Edit Captions within Ensemble

The following section will go over how to upload your Zoom recording and how to embed the captions. This requires an Ensemble account and library. These can be requested through the Help Desk at (315)-443-2677 or help@syr.edu.

Uploading and Embedding Captioning

1. Log into ensemble.syr.edu.
2.  In the desired library, select the +Add button.
   
3. Fill in a title under the Description tab.
   
4. Under the Manage tab, select the desired workflow for the video.
   
   1. The default will be "MP4 Video Transcode".
5. Drag and drop the video file in the window.
   1. Videos can also be uploaded by selecting the Add File button and locating the video file via the finder.
6. Select the Start Upload button.
7. When the upload is complete, select the Caption tab.
   
8. Add the .VTT caption file, and select Start Upload.
   
9. Select Continue when done.
10. Select Publish, if desired.

Editing Captions

If the captioning file contain errors, they can be edited with the Amara captioning tool in Ensemble. 

1. In the Media Library, find the desired video.
2. Select the Edit button on that video.
   
3.  Select the Caption tab.
   
4. Select Amara Caption Editor.
5. Select Launch Amara Editor.
   
   1. A prompt will appear, with information on how to use the editor.
   2. The Settings icon (a wrench) can be selected to access the Show Tutorial feature.
6. Use the tools in the editor to edit the captions.
   
7. When complete, select Publish.
8. The captioning file is now updated for the video and can also be downloaded if needed.