New Voices and New Visions – Summer New Voices and New Visions – Summer 20082008
Infrastructure for Creating a Infrastructure for Creating a CyberclassroomCyberclassroom
Jennifer Teig von Hoffman
Boston University
How Did We Create Cyberclass?How Did We Create Cyberclass?
The people were far more important than the technology
Connections among people led to…Working together over email led to…Developing a proposal for distributed
project, to implement two classroom courses
What Was Class Infrastructure?What Was Class Infrastructure?
Project meetings and many, many class sessions on Access Grid
Distributed VR on tiled stereo wall for class projects
Email lists, including studentsWeb sites of various kinds
The Access Grid (AG)The Access Grid (AG)
A set of software applications, for collaborating across high-performance computer networks
Developed by Argonne National Laboratory
Much of what I’ll say would apply to any videoconferencing situation, not just AG
Year 1: UNM and BU CyberclassYear 1: UNM and BU Cyberclass
Three times a week, we used AG between UNM and BU
Pictured: Class on audio basics, using physical demonstrations
Year 2: Virtual VisitsYear 2: Virtual Visits
Walatowa High Charter School had virtual visits with BU and UNM over the course of the year
Gotta Sweat the Small StuffGotta Sweat the Small Stuff
Small technical details can make or break any AG meeting– Camera adjustments, lighting,
microphone placement, software adjustments
Many things that should be easy may not be– Case in point: Sharing media
Can You Hear Me?Can You Hear Me?
Audio problems far more disruptive than video problems!
We ensure that each person has access to a microphone– This may mean moving the microphone,
or moving the personAudio problems can be intermittent,
so if problems arise pause to fix
Video Quality MattersVideo Quality Matters
Think about how different it would feel to talk with each of the people pictured here– Both are me
Camera placement and lighting are essential!
Sharing ApplicationsSharing Applications
This is still harder than it should beDuring classes, we used VNC to
show PowerPoint slides, and for software demonstrations
Sometimes when no software easily supported what we needed to do, we’d point a camera at the screen
Got Trouble? Text Chat HelpsGot Trouble? Text Chat Helps
We tried not to let technical issues disrupt classes– AG operators discuss problems
amongst themselves through text chat– Today’s workshop organizers also have
each others’ cell phone numbers
Complementary TeachingComplementary Teaching
“The guest lectures, the artists helped us incorporate into the VR world and the help from the BU people, sometimes you wish they were here but it’s an AG, it’s not perfect. That’s why we had teachers here. It’s been complementary; the tag team (teachers) help each other.”– [comment from UNM student]
No Other ClassNo Other Class
“It worked good over the AG…It was good working with the team. No other class would have brought us together. “– [comment from
UNM student] UNM Class Project
Helping Newcomers Use the AGHelping Newcomers Use the AG
Using video conferencing takes some getting used to– A little orientation helps – don’t jump
right into instructionIt’s hard to remember to use the
microphone, make sure you’re on camera, etc
Face Time Still MattersFace Time Still Matters
We needed both AG and travel to really make this project work
“Glenn coming from BU [was one of the highlights of the class]. It’s okay to see them over the screen. But we got the full effect when saw him in person and picked his brain.”– [comment from UNM student]
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