Level One

Obviously a teacher can use a laptop or desktop camera and mic to broadcast a class live through either Teams or Zoom.

Pros: It's free! There is no learning curve as far as the software or hardware setup.

Cons: Terrible audio. Little or no control over how students see the teacher.

Cost= $0

Level Two

Since audio is possibly more important than video, the teacher uses a microphone. There is a choice here between either a handheld microphone or a lavalier, or lapel, mic. This does not mean buying an expensive studio mic. There are plenty of inexpensive mics that will do the job.

I would also suggest using an inexpensive camcorder with a microphone in-port and hdmi output for connecting a computer. The ones we use in Broadcast are Canon Vixia R800s. These run around $250 on Amazon.

Pros: You have control over what the camera sees. There is a slight learning curve as far as software or hardware setup.

Cons: Only one microphone, so audio of the students interacting is barely audible.

Cost= $250 (camera) + $25 (mic)

Level Three

If you want to mic the class, you can either connect a box under the camera or use an inexpensive soundboard. Once again, the video solution would be the Canon Vixia with a mic input jack.You can connect a box with two in ports and one out. Here's an example from Beachtek.

Pros: You can hear students.

Cons: The cost. There is a higher learning curve as far as the software or hardware setup.

Cost= $250 (camera) + $50 (2 microphones) + $149 (XLR converter box)

A sound board would also work.