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Policy for recording live teaching to assist student study
Policy for recording live teaching to assist student study
Revision Date: 16 June 2023
Policy Owner: Vice President for Learning and Teaching
Approval Body: Academic Council (16 June 2023)
Review: 3 years
Policy Contents
Policy for recording live teaching to assist student study
Purpose of recordings made under this policy
Guiding principles
Retention of recordings
Consent to be recorded
Recording of teaching by students
Use and misuse of recordings
Copyright and Legal Matters
Related Documents
Contact for further information
Policy for recording live teaching to assist student study
UCC is fundamentally a campus-based university and teaching and learning ordinarily occur on-site and in-person. However, the University understands that students undertaking taught courses may wish to review recordings of lectures for study and exam preparation purposes while also recognising that students may also have concerns about lecture recording. The University also understands that academics are conscious of considerations including unauthorised sharing, privacy and data protection matters, and quality and pedagogical value of lecture recordings. This policy seeks to facilitate the practical and responsible recording of teaching sessions by clarifying the circumstances in which such recordings take place, the respective roles and responsibilities of those involved, and the implications of breaches of this policy.
For the purposes of this policy, the term “recording” refers to any audio or visual recording of a teaching session, made using a University licensed/supplied audio or visual recorder. The decision to record is at the discretion of the relevant staff member, and the University as employer supports this. Staff who wish to record their teaching are encouraged to do so using the university’s approved lecture capture software (currently, Panopto) and the technology provided by AVMS in all lecture rooms which can automatically store the recording in the correct Canvas module; instructions are available at UCC Audio Visual Services Lecture Recording.
Purpose of recordings made under this policy
1. The objective of this policy is to facilitate and encourage staff who wish to record their teaching to provide revision aids to students who have already attended class in person, or who had good reason to be absent.
2. Staff should make clear to students the inherent value of in-person attendance whenever possible, that recordings do not replace attendance in-person, and that recording live teaching does not mean that the module is “on-line.”
3. This policy covers only recordings made of live teaching which should be clearly distinguished from asynchronous recordings designed and intended to be delivered on-line.
Guiding principles
4. The decision to record lectures or other teaching is made by the relevant staff member at their own discretion, as is the timing of any recording’s release and availability - whether that release is immediate or on completion of teaching.School-level decisions on lecture recording should not infringe on the discretion of the individual lecturer in this regard although a School-level and programme-level approach is encouraged for consistency between modules and within a programme.
5. Notwithstanding the generality of para. 4, the University is required to afford reasonable accommodation to students with a disability, as required by law. Recording of lectures for individual students with specific learning needs when requested by Disability Support (DS) might be considered a Reasonable Accommodation. DS has developed a Reasonable Accommodations Policy that was approved by Academic Board on 30 May 2023. Staff are asked to refer to the Reasonable Accommodations Policy and to DS with queries and for further guidance if required. DS forms part of Access UCC and details can be found at UCC Disability Support. Inclusive UCC provides further guidance on digital inclusion and accessibility at Inclusive UCC.
6. The staff member making the recording, or module coordinator, may delete or edit the recording at any time.
7. Recordings are made for the benefit of students. Except in cases where individual staff members choose to include recordings in their teaching portfolios, recordings will not be used by the University to assess teaching quality or as part of the academic promotions process.
8. If staff choose to record, they should stress that recordings are provided simply as revision aids for students who attended in class. A staff member may choose to make the recordings available to all students registered on a module, or those registered with DS. There is no expectation that staff will spend time editing recordings to improve their quality.
9. It is acknowledged that some teaching may not be appropriate for recording, e.g., teaching containing confidential information or for ethical or privacy reasons.
Retention of recordings
10. Notwithstanding the generality of para. 6, if staff choose to record, it is recommended that lecture recordings ordinarily be retained until such time as supplemental examinations are completed in order to assist students with course revision and examination preparation.
11. Staff are advised to review their module content on an annual basis and decide themselves what recordings to make available to students as part of the annual ‘rollover’ of Canvas.
Consent to be recorded
12. By choosing to record, staff who teach give consent to be recorded and for the recordings to be used and stored for purposes of student revision.
13. If a student registered with DS is recording the teaching session, both the student and the DS unit will continue to inform, in advance, the relevant teaching staff member/s.
14. If more than one staff member is involved in the module, the module coordinator should consult each staff member as to whether recording will take place. Recording will only take place for lectures where the staff member has agreed by opting to use lecture recording software
15. Staff should advise those in the lecture that recording is taking place whether for the whole cohort or for a select number of DS registered students. Students are provided with a notice advising them that lecture recording may occur as part of the UCC Data Protection notice for students. Lecturers should also advise those in the lecture that recording is taking place.
16. The lecturer should inform students that recording of their participation in a class is voluntary to enable them make a choice whether to participate in the recording.
17. Recordings will not be included by staff in teaching portfolios except with the consent of any students or other staff recorded.
18. The Guest Lecturer Consent and Release Form should be completed by guest lecturers and will generally be retained locally for two years but should be retained for as long as guest lecture recordings remain in use. Guest lecturers may withdraw their consent to the use of their recordings at any time.
Recording of teaching by students
19. Where teaching is not being or cannot be recorded using a university system, students may request advance permission from teaching staff – and students present in the room – to record teaching if the recording is to be used solely for the purposes of studying, revising, and exam preparation purposes. This request must be made in writing to staff before commencing recording and must describe the proposed action and the recording proposed. When deciding to give written permission, staff should be cognisant of the need for other students present to be aware of being recorded ( para. 16, above).
20. Students are reminded that covert audio and/or visual recording of lectures/classes is strictly prohibited.
Use and misuse of recordings
21. The University makes lecture recordings available to students for their study and exam preparation purposes. Students must only use recordings for these purposes.
22. Recordings linked with a module are to be viewed only by students registered for that module. Any other copying, editing, circulation or publication is not permitted without the express written permission of the lecturer.
23. Breaches of this policy by students are considered a serious matter by the University and will be reported to the Deputy President and Registrar and may result in disciplinary action.
Copyright and Legal Matters
24. Copyright and intellectual property rights are not changed by this policy.
25. If a lecturer uses third-party material in a presentation, for example a diagram, photograph, graphic or video from a book or from the internet, he/she should abide by copyright and other applicable laws. Acknowledgements should be present and clearly legible in the lecture material.
26. It is important to be cognisant of and abide by the University’s Acceptable Use Policy (AUP) when using lecture capture, as all AUP parameters will apply.
Related Documents
This Policy should be read in conjunction with other relevant policy and strategy documents, particularly the following:
- Acceptable Usage Policy (AUP)
- Student Data Protection notice
- IT Policies
- Data Protection Policy
- Data Protection Commission documents
- UCC Innovation Policies, including Intellectual Property Policy
- Student Policies and Procedures, including Student Rules
- UCC Attendance Policy for Students
Contact for further information
If you have any queries in relation to this Policy please contact the Policy Owner:
Professor Paul McSweeney
Vice President for Learning and Teaching University College Cork
Telephone: 021-490 3609
Email: vplearningandteaching@ucc.ie
First approved by Academic Board on 01 June 2022. Revised version approved by Academic Board on 07 June 2023 and Academic Council on 16 June 2023