Across the country, IT professionals and educators for K-12 and higher education kicked off the 2020 school year a bit differently this time around. As the pandemic continues, most districts are designating either a hybrid or virtual learning model, presenting a litany of new challenges.
During a timely webinar hosted by Comstar Technologies, an expert panel of tech and education professionals delved into these challenges. The webinar encompasses case studies, a viewer Q&A session, and even a classroom walkthrough. Check it out here:
Moderated by JSA Executive Vice President Dean Perrine, this brainstorm explores the various obstacles schools, parents, and students face and how complex these new learning models really are.
“This is a journey we’ve been on,” explains Carl Marks, Chief Information Officer of Alvernia University. “Limiting classroom sizes, and on top of that, the need to turn every classroom into a video conferencing classroom. It’s not just the students who need solutions, either. We hear a lot of people talk about giving students the ability to come in virtually. Interestingly enough, what we’re also dealing with is faculty members conducting class remotely, which is presenting a whole other challenge.”
Hybrid or Virtual?
Among live webinar attendees, a full 89% responded that their local schools would be either fully remote or employing a hybrid model with some physical participation and some virtual.
Organizations like Biamp – a provider of audiovisual hardware solutions – had to be quick and creative in addressing the ever-growing adversity faced by educational institutions. Take, for instance, microphones.
“Students will be continuously moving. They won’t be sitting in the same place. They will be social distancing,” describes Abdul Chaudri, Director of Strategic Accounts at Biamp.
Chaudri knows that the technology needs to create audio pickup from anywhere in the room and that the conversation needs to clearly transmit to a remote audience. Not only does the microphone need to have range, but depth as well. If not, the quality of education and the student experience is at stake.
Biamp Executive Vice President, Joe Adrulis, explains that, at the end of the day, classroom technology needs to successfully create an education environment:
“If the audio fades when someone turns away, it’s an opportunity for a participant to detach from the experience. Keeping them engaged is a big challenge.”
This thinking was reflected by webinar participants, where no less than 100% of respondents cited student and staff experience as their chief concern with hybrid or virtual settings.
Trends, Challenges and Obstacles
So, what are the current trends and best practices of virtual and hybrid learning? What are the surprises, and what are the benefits? Replay this not-to-be-missed webinar as Comstar Director of Audio Visual Solutions Bob White and an expert panel discuss all this and more in the all-new webinar Preparing For A Virtual Campus and Hybrid Learning Solutions.
To learn more about Comstar Technologies, click here.
