Why doesn't Canvas Studio automatically caption videos?

[christinal]

The process for students to caption their videos is so clunky! I don't think any of them will actually follow the steps. I am very hesitant to use Canvas Studio because I fear students with hearing issues will not have full access.

[Chris_Hofer]

Hello @christinal ...

Only videos that have been uploaded (I refer to them as original video content) can be captioned by Canvas Studio.  It's my understanding that if a user adds YouTube videos to Canvas Studio, those videos cannot have captions generated for legal reasons.  I do agree that the process to edit the auto-generated captions for original video content is quite clunky, and I wish there was an easier way to edit captions.  It is possible to download the captioning file, edit it, and then re-upload it back to the video.  I typically have used the Wordpad (not Notepad) program on my PC in some cases if I am editing captions.

I'm not sure this provides a full answer for you...but I thought I'd chime in with some of my thoughts.  Hope this helps in some way.  Take care, and stay safe.

[Landmark_Coll]

I agree. We are in the midst of transitioning from VidGrid (a third party video platform) to Studio, and I'm deeply concerned about the captioning process. In VidGrid, it was entirely automated; after you upload or record a video, it gets captioned without having to request it and the captions appear on playback by default. With Studio, it seems, captions need to be manually requested, and after they're created they have to be manually published. And finally, viewers need to turn the captions on to see them. I sincerely hope this can be addressed soon.

[Chris_Hofer]

@Landmark_Coll ...

The captioning service that Studio has is not 100% accurate, but it is pretty good.  (This Guide says it's about 85% accurate: How do I add captions to media in Canvas Studio? - Canvas Community.)  While I do agree that automatic captioning would be nice to have with Studio videos, the captioning also needs to be accurate.  By not publishing the captions immediately, it gives you the chance to review any mistakes that the automatic captioning may have screwed up on.  Personally, I would much rather have a video captioned accurately than discovering later on of an embarrassing type-o that could have been corrected before making the captions "live".  I hope this helps a bit.

[Landmark_Coll]

While I agree that accurate captions are better than inaccurate captions, I'd argue that potentially inaccurate captions are far better than no captions at all. Anyone who's seen live captions in a Teams meeting or Google meet meeting know that automated captions aren't perfect. (Ever watch NBCnow with captions?) A hearing-impaired user would be grateful to have captions, even if they're not perfect. The current procedure is so cumbersome that I fear many won't even bother.

[Chris_Hofer]

Hello there, @Landmark_Coll ...

Thanks for the comments.  Unfortunately, I have never seen NBCnow, so I cannot comment one way or the other on it.  I think the main difference I see between Canvas Studio and other online meeting services you've mentioned (Teams, Google, etc.) is that nothing in Studio is "live".  It's all recorded material.  Studio isn't a "live" streaming video service.  Whereas, when you are in a Teams meeting or Google meet meeting, those are happening at the moment of the recording.  So, while I absolutely see where recording a video in Studio and having "live" captioning would be helpful, in my mind, that's where the main difference may be at???  Just a thought.

I think this would be a great candidate for a Feature Idea here in the Canvas Community, and I would support it if you submitted it.  From any screen here in the Community, you can click on the PRODUCT menu at the top of the screen and then click on IDEA CONVERSATIONS.  On the screen that appears, click on the "Suggest an idea" button.  Here are a few Guides that will help as you create your idea:

• How do idea conversations work in the Canvas Commu... - Canvas Community
• What is the feature development process for Instru... - Canvas Community
• How do I create a new idea conversation in the Can... - Canvas Community

Hope this helps a bit.

[Landmark_Coll]

Thanks.

It's actually already a Feature Idea here:

https://community.canvaslms.com/t5/Idea-Conversations/Studio-closed-caption-as-default/idi-p/403772

As for whether the content is live or not, much of it is extemporaneous and not always meant to be a polished presentation. Imagine asking students to participate in a Canvas Discussion by recording themselves with the Studio RCE embed tool. And then imagine asking them to request captions, wait for notification that they're ready, then go back to the discussion to proofread and publish them. It's not likely to happen.

[Chris_Hofer]

Thanks for the link.  I gave it a positive rating.  Hopefully Instructure will consider it.