eTeachingHave eClassrooms come of age?
Project Leader Alan Wimberley
Team Marg Knight
Mark Tasman
Introduction
Have online classrooms come of age? How far can we push them given current network infrastructures?
We compare some eClassroom products, share the experience of working with two of them, and look at high-end technologies that will become generally available in the near future.
Project Summary
Investigate and evaluate emerging IP collaborative technologies with particular reference to IP Video Conferencing.
Use the blended distance learning option of the Cisco Networking Academy Program as a vehicle for the investigation
Technologies
On-line classroomWikisBlogs
The Cisco Networking Academy Management System (CNAMS)Packet Tracer 5 (Cisco product)Netlab
Online classroomElluminate DimDim Webex Connect Pro
VoIP
Dial-in Opt x X
Video Conf x x
Recording x**
Presentation x x x
Application Sharing
x
Smartboard x x x
User symb x x x
Own server x x
* - there is an option ** - available soon
All have a whiteboard.
Choice of eClassroom service
We used Connect Pro and Webex
A Webex account was provided to us by the Cisco Learning Institute
We purchased a year's licence for the US hosted Connect Pro
(Later trialled locally hosted version)
ConnectPro Screenshot
Webex Screenshot
How did they perform?
Voice, video, whiteboard, presentations, application sharing,
polling, chat, file sharing, interactivity
Voice
Participants found voice quality to be generally acceptable, even though there were dropouts, and some voice distortion.
Webex was the best for voice, closely followed by the locally hosted Connect Pro.
Voice
If all participants microphones are on, this is likely to cause a lot of noise. If the participant is not using a headset, then their speaker can feedback unpleasantly.
Turn off all microphones, and give the microphone to participants as required.
Video
As can be seen, video does work.
However, it is very small, has a low frame rate, and does not synch with voice.
Freezing the video gave some impression of attendance.
Video
Video was generally unsatisfactory.
With Connect Pro, the more video participants, the smaller the images, until the images were off-screen.
With Webex it was difficult to display video and chat/participants screens
Best use was to start the video in Connect Pro, and freeze the image.
Whiteboard
Whiteboards are disappointing, and do not provide ease of use.
In Connect Pro, students could wipe the whiteboard if given minimum permission to draw on it.
Webex allowed students to erase their own drawings only
Presentations
Presentations
Both Connect Pro and Webex change powerpoint presentations to their own format.
Both perform well for slide shows.
Application Sharing
Application sharing
Some applications, when shared, chew through bandwidth
e.g. Word, Exel
This causes glitches in voice
Do not talk while manipulating shared applications
Application Sharing
Connect Pro provides a preview screen of what participants are seeing - second screen is ideal for this.
Polling
Connect Pro will do only one poll question at a time when using the "poll pod" on the fly.
Webex allows more than one question at a time on the fly
CHAT
Chat was used from the start of a session to the end.
At the beginning and end of a session, attendees chatted to each other and the presenters.
During a session, chat was used by presenters to ask questions.
Chat
Chat works well.
Participants can chat to each other, with presenters or hosts, and can do so privately or publicly
File Sharing
Large files downloaded by multiple users simultaneously will result in deterioration of voice.
File sharing is best done before or after presentations, not during
Icons (Emoticons)
"Participant status"
All participants can bring up their choice of available icons beside their name in the participant's list.
Icons includehand up
smiley
go faster
Connection Monitor
Connect Pro provides some connection information as shown on the left.
These data were captured with the classroom open, but no participants
What worked
Powerpoint presentations
Voice
Netlab with voice
Polls
Chat
Using icons
What didn't work
Showing videos
Netlab running at the same time as a slideshow caused problems.
Videoconferencing
Whiteboard for much more than text
Recommendations
Run trial sessions until confident.
You will need to considerUploading powerpoint files before sessions - large files can take several minutes
Have poll questions ready beforehand - you will be busy enough running the session without creating them on the fly
Have applications running on your workstation ready to share
Sort participant issues with pre-sessions.
Participants may :require to download software to access the eclassroom for the first timehave issues with voicehave issues with videonot understand how to use icons or chat
Try to sort these issues with "orientation" sessions
Have two presenters
The main presenter will run the class - showing powerpoint or sharing application.The second presenter is free to respond to chat questions, deal with participant issues.On more than one occasion, the second presenter took over when the main presenter's voice was not working.
Have a second screen
A second screen provides more screen "real estate."
Use for preview
Have a script on the first screen
Use icons, polls and chat to maintain participant involvement.
Voice, chat, icons and polls are the mainstay of an eClassroom.
Other technologies
Wikis
Blogs
Wiki
Choice of Wiki is pbWiki.com
No adverts !! Free !!!
There is a private Wiki for all students and staff in the project. All are invited to contribute to it.
Students also have to complete a case study for Cisco, and will create their own private team Wikis
Blog
Choice of Blog site is www.wordpress.com
No adverts !! Free !!!
Academy students are required to keep a journal. For this project, they will write their journals as a blog
Cisco Specific
CNAMS
Packet Tracer 5
Packet Tracer is software for Academy students which emulates networks and network devices.
PT5 will allow connectivity of student created networks over an intranet (local,) or the Internet (global.)
Screen Shot of Packet Tracer 5.0
Two instancesof PacketTracercommunicatinglocally viamultiusercapability
Netlab
Wiki
Blog
What's coming
Everywhere ..
2005
Bandwidth
2010 2015 2020 20252005
Storage
2010 2015 2020 2025
2005
Information
2010 2015 2020 20252005
Computing
2010 2015 2020 2025
1010101001101010101010101010
1010101001101010101010101010
Cap
abili
ty
Time
Only 20% of people in the world are now connected to the Internet …Is this how the rest will get online?
New Devices:Your Phone Will Become Your Computer
New Ways to Interact with Technology:Any Surface Becomes a Display
Researching: Comparing & Evaluating
Researching: Comparing & Evaluating
Connecting: Adopting more tools & using more channels
Connecting: Adopting more tools & using more channels
Contributing & Creating: Sharing Content & Opinions,
Inventing
Contributing & Creating: Sharing Content & Opinions,
Inventing
Influencing: Communication & Social
Interactions
Influencing: Communication & Social
Interactions
Connected to global communities: Social networks, Blogs, Wikis, virtual reality, Facebook
Sharing with others – Wikipedia, photo sharing, video
Any way, anytime, anywhere, Connectivity (broadband, mobility, home networks
Customizing & Self-Serving: Embracing richer, more
relevant experiences
Customizing & Self-Serving: Embracing richer, more
relevant experiences
ConsumersTaking control
Supporting Data : Evolution of the webIn
div
idu
al a
nd
Gro
up
Pro
du
ctiv
ity
Size of Data, Size of Groups
Sources: Radar Networks and Nova Spivack, 2007
1980–1990PC Era
Web 1.01990–2000
Web 2.02000–2010
Web 3.02010–2020
Web 4.02020–2030
Desktop
World WideWeb
SemanticWeb
TheWeb OS
Folders,databases, lists
Web sites,e-mail, directories
Keywordsearch
Tagging andfolksonomies
Natural-language
search
Semanticsearch
Agents and reasoning
The Future of Productivity
2012Smart appliances
connected to the Web
201280% of Web sites
using intelligent search (Semantic Web)
2017Intelligent and outcome-oriented search fully embedded in the Web
Always on, high speed connectivity, integral to peoples daily lives
Source: IDC, 2006
Today By 2017
• 100,000 WiMax subscribers in Western Europe today—By 2012, 5 million subscribers
• Mobile WiMAX will connect 8% of the world’s 1.1 billion mobile broadband subscribers by 2012 or 88 million users worldwide
• NTT DoCoMo is testing 100 Mbps for mobile users and 1 Gbps for stationary users— 2010 Launch
• Blanketed by connectivity 125 times faster than today
• Always-on, highly-custom multimedia information available to any device, anywhere
• Billions of devices connected to the Internet will allow things to get done in the background
Telepresence
Telepresence
Requires around 15mbps bandwidth (approx 5mb per screen)
Could start appearing in TAFEs in 2 - 3 years
"Green" technology
Final thought ..
“Education is the most powerful weapon which you
can use to change the world”
Nelson Mandela
Questions?
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