Headline (autumn 2024) Echo360 to be deprecated

Echo360 was reprieved in the summer of 2024 for a year whilst the new Learning Capture Framework is initiated. (Echo360 licence at CUG) Currently expected to expire on 30th July 2025, but dependent on Learning Capture Framework progress and finding a replacement e.g. Planet e stream.

You are advised to manage your usage with this in mind.

This article will help you to understand and use the automatic speech recognition and closed captioning features of Echo360 to improve accessibility for your learners.

What is Echo360 ASR?

ASR stands for “automatic speech recognition” and is a service provided by Amazon that uses computers to translate speech into text and sync the text with the video.

All videos produced or uploaded on the Echo360 platform now have transcriptions which can be edited and enabled as closed captions. Videos added before this feature was enabled (Winter 2020) will NOT have transcriptions.

Echo 360 ASR accuracy

An ASR service is not likely to meet the accuracy levels required of closed captions for hearing impaired individuals. You will find this particularly true in the cases where

• Background noise interferes with the recording
• The speaker’s voice is at a low volume in the recording
• The speaker’s pronunciation of certain words presents difficulty for the speech recognition software

All that being said, transcriptions can be applied much faster than closed captions and typically cost less to generate. Transcriptions may provide a “good enough” solution for providing both visual and audio content for lectures.

Logging into your CU Echo360 account

You can log in to the Echo360 centre here:

https://login.echo360.org.uk/login?appId=c08c41ee-50e3-45e8-a6e6-e9579b28f620&afterLoginUrl=/home

Once you have logged in, you will be able to see all of the content you have access to and that you can view is found on your Echo360 Library page.

A screen grab example of what this might look like is shown below:

This is sometimes also referred to as your “Media Library” or “Content Library”. The Library page combines all of the Echo360 media you have access to in one place. 

Adding closed captions to Echo360 videos

Follow the ITS guides below:

Moodle Help for Staff, Echo 360, Adding closed captions to echo360 videos

https://cumoodle.coventry.ac.uk/mod/book/view.php?id=2784126

NOTE that this ITS guide is on CU Moodle and that moodle itself will be limited as follows:

a.       In a read only archive state (users will be able to view past records but not create  change anything)
b.       Only available on campus or via VPN (past external Open Moodle users will not be able to access)
c.       Only available on 2 days per week –  Monday and Friday  09:00 – 17:00. Anyone needing to retrieve historic information would need to access during those periods.

Further information

Echo360 Capture software guides

ITS general guides on using Echo360 (updated Aug 2021)

mdlhelpstaff: Echo360 Capture Software (coventry.ac.uk)

NOTE that this ITS guide is on CU Moodle and that moodle itself will be limited as mentioned previous.