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WCET Annual Meeting Presentation
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Videoconferencing: Creating the Virtual Classroom
Alan D. GreenbergWainhouse ResearchRobert WagnerUtah State UniversityAndy BlackUniversity of Utah College of Nursing
WCET Annual MeetingSan Antonio, TX November 1, 2012
Collaborative Technology
© 2012 Wainhouse Research, Inc. All rights reserved. 2 WR Distance Education and e-Learning Metrics Survey 2011
What do these (and other colleges / universities) have in common?
© 2012 Wainhouse Research, Inc. All rights reserved. 3
?
“The combination of online technology and the campus experience has the potential to take innovative traditional universities to new levels, allowing them not only to respond to disruptive competition but also to serve many more students with their existing resources.”-The Innovative University: Changing the DNA of Higher Education from the Inside Out, Eyring & Christensen, 2011. Italics and bold added.
Utah State University - Statewide• 350 Interactive Video Conferencing (IVC)
courses Fall 2012 semester• Over 29 USU-owned sites• Average 474 IVC events per
week• Faculty development/Administrative
Communication
The Pro’s and Con’s of IVC Classroom Delivery
Pro’s:• High quality audio and video• Easier transition for traditional faculty
instruction• Use of existing classroom resources
(retrofit)• Broader application across an institution• Provides a “classroom experience” for
students• Provides a “classroom experience” for
instructors• Controlled technology and instructional
environment• Effective for multi-campus university
systems• Local institutional identity and
community building• Use of a variety of instructional tools
Con’s:• Costs (technology and delivery)• Requires a systemized high speed network
across endpoints• Lack of mobility for students and
instructors• Promotes the “stand and deliver”
approach to instruction• Restricted endpoint delivery (i.e.
locations)
• Codec• Room controller• Overhead microphones• Student/Instructor Cameras • Projector and/or Monitor (e.g. 90”)• Lighting, wall color, sound-proofing• Instructor tools: document camera,
monitor(s), computer, smart board• Facilitator station• Lecture capture
IVC Classroom Design
Focusing on the “interactive” of Interactive Video Conferencing
• Un-tether the instructor• Interactive learning models• Creating the classroom experience from a
distance• Flipping meets IVC• Technology rich…technology development• Instructor-student evaluations
University of Utah College of Nursing
• In a nutshell…o We offer BS, MS, DNP and PhD education in nursingo All of our courses are enhanced through online learningo Many of our courses are also offered in mixed or fully distance formatso Our PhD nursing program is offered only through synchronous
videoconferencing
• Nursing education at a distanceo Our PhD program is designed to educate nurses by allowing them to
remain in their remote locations within the intermountain west, and internationally
o PhD education is more about learning with others about theoretical concepts, and therefore engaging discussion is key
o Therefore, asynchronous online education was not adequate to meet our program goals and objectives
Early PhD Nursing Program
• Early PhD Nursing program through synchronous videoconferencingo Moved entirely to videoconferencing distance classes in 2004o Originally delivered using IVC equipment (Polycom) to students in their
homes on their PC’s using Polycom PVX softwareo Connections made over the Utah Telehealth Network bridging serviceo A technician was employed to watch the courses live and
troubleshoot/make adjustments on the fly as requested
PhD and DNP Nursing Programs Today
• PhD Nursing program todayo Continuing the use of full synchronous
videoconferencing services through the Utah Telehealth Network (UTN) bridge
o Using Cisco Jabber software allowing both Mac and PC platforms, and all OS versions
o UTN provides connection support and monitoring services, as well as initial testing and setup with students in their homes/remote locations
o Individual desktop troubleshooting performed by CON IT technicians
• Webconferencing also usedo Currently using Wimba (now owned by Blackboard,
and migrating to Collaborate)o Multimedia content delivered through Wimba as
well as live chat simultaneously with the videoconferencing session
o Both video and webconferencing sessions are recorded for student playback
Tried and Learned• Examples of other applications and systems tried
and tested for videoconferencingo Skype Groupo Adobe Connecto Vidyoo SeeVogho Conference Meo WebExo Polycom CMA
• We have not yet found a single solution that provides many live video feeds as well as webconferencing features in the same application, using reasonable Internet bandwidth, and quality video resolution at a reasonable price
What we Need• Still seeking a single low-cost program solution
which will provide:o Multiple synchronous video feeds (up to 20 or more)o High quality audio and video transmissiono Low latencyo Session recording of all functions (audio, video, desktop and application
sharing, and multimedia)o Webconferencing features:
• Whiteboard• PPT sharing• Desktop/application sharing• Recording
Need Flexibility• Faculty able to teach from their offices or on the
road through the Jabber software, rather than be tied to the Polycom hardwareo Just need a laptop with a camera and a microphoneo A separate higher quality webcam rather than the built-in is often
bettero A headset with microphone is also better at reducing/eliminating echo
cancellation issues• This is less convenient/comfortable, but the quality is better
• Can still teach from the main classroom using the Polycom equipment if desiredo More controlled environment
Bridging Service• Most applications such as Skype and Adobe
Connect rely on Internet bandwidth to manage the video connectionso This is why they limit the number of live video feedso After about 6 live video feeds, the quality dramatically decreases, and
latency increases
• A bridging service throttles all feeds through the same management device, delivering quality to all connectionso More expensive, but provides better quality
• The University of Utah College of Nursing currently utilizes the Utah Telehealth Network bridging service
