Caption Connect Captioning Pilot

The Speech to Text Software Pilot aims to test and understand the benefits of using 'Caption Connect' captioning software in schools, primarily for students who are deaf or hard of hearing.

The captioning software will be available for teaching staff in five pilot schools, enabling students to read live captions on the interactive whiteboard or screen at the front of the classroom. Additionally, the software will transcribe the lesson, allowing the teacher to share it (once edited) post-class.

Access to the Software for Teachers

How do I set up an account?

The school’s nominated system administrator (e.g. C2K Manager or ICT Co-ordinator) will collate email addresses and forward them to the local Teacher of the Deaf. This information will then be provided to CaptionConnect to set up individual accounts for teachers.

How do I login to the software?

  1. Enter the URL: https://eu.captionconnect.com
  2. Enter your User ID (C2K email address)
  3. Enter your password*

*As this cloud-based software does not have Single Sign On enabled for EA, please refrain from using the same password as used for your C2k login.

Please use a complex and unique password with a minimum of 14-characters.

What happens if I cannot log into CaptionConnect? Who do I contact?

Please contact the school’s nominated System Administrators* (e.g. C2K Manager or ICT Co-ordinator) to troubleshoot. If they cannot resolve the issue, they will be able to contact CaptionConnect Support at: [email protected]

*Please do not contact the C2k Service Desk for any Caption Connect software related issues.

My school uses Roger TouchScreen Microphones, can these be used with the captioning software?

Yes, the TSM Microphones will work with the software. EA Sensory Service will provide a Roger Neckloop to link the TSM and your computer.

Watch the How to use the Roger TSM and Neckloop video on Vimeo. 

What happens if there is a fault with the Roger Touchscreen microphone and/or Neckloop?

Contact your regular visiting Teacher of Deaf children and young people or the EA Sensory Service [email protected] so a replacement can be quickly provided.

Privacy and Data

Does CaptionConnect comply with GDPR?

Yes, CaptionConnect complies with GDPR. A DPIA Screening Report has been completed with guidance provided by EA Information Governance.

Does CaptionConnect pick up pupils’ voices?

No, only the teachers voice is picked up using the Roger Touchscreen Microphone (this defaults to lanyard mode when on the teachers’ neck). There is also Speech Pause Attenuation (SPA) which can temporarily shut down the transmitter when not in use (i.e. placed on the desk) or there are pauses in speech.

Can personally identifiable information (PII) be removed from the Transcript?

The Transcript is fully editable. Additionally, the Summarisation feature will generate concise summaries of your transcripts (please see Point 21). You, the teacher, must review the Transcript in detail after the lesson to ensure no personally identifiable information (PII) has been captured. If you plan to send a lesson to a student this is an important step to ensure there is no personal information shared, as this would be considered a data breach.

Once the Transcript has been shared or if not required for future use, please ensure it is permanently deleted (see Deleting Transcript below).

Please also note there is the option to turn off transcript capture. These privacy controls are managed when creating a session.

 

Data Protection

A waiver will appear during your first login as staff with a tick box. This will confirm that you, the Teacher, have agreed to the FAQ document and understand the possible risks to personal data. The FAQ document will be downloadable at this stage, and it can be saved to your files.

“Please check this box to confirm you have read the FAQ Document which includes data protection considerations, and you have familiarised yourself with School’s data protection policies and procedures.”

*Please note that if you accidently select ‘No’ there will be an opportunity to login again to accept this.

Waiver will be shown on Transcript

There will be a Waiver shown on the downloaded Transcript advising the following:

“This transcript is for internal educational use only. You may not copy, distribute, publish, display, modify, or in any way exploit this content.”

Deleting Transcript

Please ensure that all transcripts are promptly deleted either immediately or once they have been shared with the students.
To delete transcripts on Caption Connect, follow these steps:

  • Navigate to the Session Section: Find the specific session or meeting which you want to delete.
  • Navigate to the Delete icon: Click on the soft delete icon to the right-hand side shown for each session.
  • Delete the Transcript: Navigate to your Settings and click on Recycle bin. Please then ensure you press hard delete icon on all applicable sessions recently deleted.

Do I need to caption my entire lesson?

The teacher is in control of when and what to Caption, for example you may wish to use it for the main body of the lesson or where appropriate. To note that the school has been allocated a set number of Captioning hours.

The Captioning can be paused on screen at any time.

Muting the microphone and why this is important

The microphone should only be in use when you are presenting your lesson. Please MUTE the device when you are:

  • Helping individual pupils
  • Having a private conversation with an individual
  • Stepping outside of the classroom environment

If precautions are not taken, deaf/hard of hearing student(s) will continue to directly receive your voice in their ear, and private discussions will be visibly transcribed on screen, leading to the recording and sharing of personal information.

To enable the Mute feature on the teacher's microphone (already established as good practice) please ensure the Mute button is flashing red before proceeding. If you need to unmute, it will then flash green.

Speech Pause Attenuation (SPA) can also temporarily disable the transmitter when it's idle, such as when set down on a desk, or during breaks in speech (See above for guidance and video about the Roger TSM).

Can you tell me more about the transcript produced?

Only you, the teacher, have access to the unedited transcription produced.

Please review the transcript once the lesson has concluded to ensure there is no personal identifiable information contained within the transcript and especially prior to sharing.

The transcript is fully editable, and a summarisation feature is available which should be used (see Transcripts- Summarisation below). You can share your transcript with your student(s) as a PDF only once you have reviewed and removed any personally identifiable information (PII).

The transcription can and must be permanently deleted once no longer required.

You can enable or disable the transcription feature depending on teacher/student preference.

The video below will cover how to enable/disable your Transcript in each session, enabling the waiver for your Transcript, editing your Transcript and sharing your Transcript.

Please note that the Audio feature has been disabled for all EA/C2k accounts.

Watch the All About Transcription video on Vimeo.

Display

Can I use the CaptionConnect when presenting on screen e.g. a PowerPoint presentation?

Yes, the Captions can be used as an overlay and the size and position of the captions can be changed to suit the format of your presentation.

My student is having trouble reading the captioning. What can I do to adjust the appearance of the text?

You can adjust appearance settings in the transcription window. You can change the Font, Font size, Line Spacing, Font colour and Background colour.

Sessions

How long is the prep time prior to class commencing to set up a session?

Best practice for using this software is to setup Scheduled Sessions. This gives you the option to disable the transcript and will take no more than 2-3 minutes to setup.

Another option is to preschedule these sessions, which can be done for a period of 12 weeks from the date selected.

QuickStart sessions can be setup instantly without preparation however please note you cannot disable the transcript during these sessions. Before pressing ‘Start’ in the top right-hand corner ensure you go to Settings in the bottom left-hand corner and removing your colleagues access to the session (where required).

The above guidance assumes everyone has received training and is familiar with the application.

Can you make changes to a scheduled session time once created?

Yes, you can make changes to a scheduled session time once created.

When adding attachments to a session, how many attachments can I add?

There is no limit to the number of attachments per session.

Transcripts

When editing a transcript, can I undo changes?

Yes, while editing you can undo any changes using “Ctrl Z.” Once you have saved the Transcript, then you can no longer undo any changes.

There is the option to turn off transcript capture. These privacy controls are managed when creating a session.

Is the original transcript always saved prior to editing?

Yes, the original transcript is always saved prior to editing, unless:
a.“Allow Transcript Recording” is disabled at the Account level by the System Administrator, then NO Transcripts are saved at any time for that Account.
b.“Allow Transcript Recording” is disabled at the Session level by the Presenter (Teacher) before starting each session.

Summarisation Feature

Caption Connect now offers a summarisation feature* that allows you to generate concise summaries of your transcripts. You can use this feature to review the main points of your sessions, save time and space, and share the summaries with others:

  • After your session ends, go to the Transcript page and click on the Summarise button and choose the length of the summary you want.
  • Click on Generate Summary and wait for a few seconds.
  • You will see the summary displayed below the transcript. You can copy, download, or share the summary however you must review the Transcript summarisation in detail before sharing to ensure there is no personally identifiable information recorded.
  • You can edit the summary by clicking on the Edit button and make changes.
  • Then hit download summary.

*The session summarisation uses ChatGPT and only scans the transcript. It cannot retrieve information or answers outside of the transcript nor is any information shared with 3rd parties.

If you do not agree to AI for summarisation and you wish to edit the session transcript, you would need to manually edit the main transcript.

The summarisation feature is available for all accounts and sessions, unless the "Allow Transcript Recording" option is disabled by the presenter or the system administrator (as per Point 18 above).

For more information, please refer to the user guides within CaptionConnect or contact [email protected].

Support & Troubleshooting

I cannot access the CaptionConnect URL. What do I do?

Please contact the Teacher of Deaf, C2K Manager or ICT Co-ordinator who can then contact [email protected] if problems persist. Please do not log a call with the C2k Service Desk.
 

Issues with a live caption session disconnecting

Clearing your web browser’s cache can indeed help resolve this problem. Here’s a quick guide on how to do it:

  • Open Google Chrome and click on the three dots in the top right corner of the browser.
  • Select “More tools” from the dropdown menu.
  • Click on “Clear browsing data”. In the window that appears, choose the time range for which you want to clear the cache.
  • Check the boxes for “Cookies and other site data” and “Cached images and files.”
  • Click “Clear data” to delete the selected items.
  • After completing these steps, your cache will be cleared, which can help improve browser performance and resolve some issues with web page.

Please contact the Teacher of Deaf, C2K Manager or ICT Co-ordinator who can then contact [email protected] if problems persist. Please do not log a call with the C2k Service Desk.

What is the process if I have additional questions or queries?

If you have additional questions or queries, please contact the TOD, C2K Manager or ICT Co-ordinator who can then contact [email protected] if required. Please do not log a call with the C2k Service Desk.

What happens if a new teacher requires an account during the Pilot? Is there a limit on the number of Users?

The number of User IDs per School will be defined during Pilot Training delivered by Sensory Service and CaptionConnect.

The school’s nominated system administrator (e.g. C2K Manager or ICT Co-ordinator) will collate any additional email addresses and forward them to the local TOD. This information will then be provided to CaptionConnect to set up individual accounts for teachers.

Please note there is a limit to the number of Captioning hours allocated to each school which will be monitored throughout the Pilot.

Support Contact Details

Please follow the below processes if you encounter any difficulties either using the Caption Connect software or your mic hardware.  

Please note the C2K Service Desk cannot provide support during the pilot. 

Software or Login Issues
  1. School Nominated Individual to be contacted in the first instance (eg. C2K Manager or ICT Coordinator). 
  2. Ticket can be logged with Caption Connect via email: [email protected]
  3. All issues to be captured by Project Team / Caption Connect for reporting purposes. 
Hardware (Roger Neck Loop) Issues 
  1. Raise issues with Teacher of Deaf via normal escalation process.
  2. If issue cannot be resolved, replacement hardware will be issued by Teacher of Deaf. 
  3. Spares stock will be maintained by EA Sensory Service. 

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Contact the Sensory Service

The Sensory Service can be contacted for advice and information specific to children and young people who have, or may have, who are deaf/hard of hearing, have a vision impairment, or who have a multi-sensory impairment.