Over the years, new technologies have created incredible opportunities for enhancing learning in Higher Education. Video conferencing is one such technology, offering benefits that have already begun to change the face of Higher Ed as we know it. Any institution that hasn’t started to invest in their video conferencing capabilities is going to find themselves severely behind the times; here are just a few ways that video conferencing is changing the landscape of Higher Ed, both inside the classroom and out.
Educational Resources
With a little instructor creativity and the right amount of technical support, the sky becomes the limit.
With the increased popularity of distance learning, hybrid classrooms, and online courses (such as MOOCs), it’s clear that video conferencing can be used to create and enhance learning environments. In addition to these now-boilerplate uses, video conferencing also allows opportunities such as distance guest lecturers and direct field-to-classroom contact. Students can gain valuable experiences that they would not otherwise have access to; with a little instructor creativity and the right amount of technical support, the sky becomes the limit for in-classroom uses of video conferencing.
Administrative Resources
The deployment of video conferencing does not have to begin and end in the classroom. It can also be a vital tool for Higher Ed administrators, staff, and IT departments. Scheduling meetings can often be an issue for individuals who are working to run a large university. Via video conference, both internal university meetings and meetings between university officials and their external contacts can be enabled under circumstances that might otherwise have precluded them. Since video conferencing cuts down on travel time from meeting to meeting (most video conference meetings can be taken from the comfort of one’s own desk), it also improves productivity at the highest levels of the institution. Video conferencing is a much-needed relief valve for overburdened schedules and allows university staff to find that extra bit of time in the day that can make a big difference when taken in aggregate.
External Resources
Video conferencing relieves the burden of requiring everyone to be in the same room and allows the university to reach out on a global scale to potential partners.
Often, universities work with outside partners, whether they be product vendors or consultants, to coordinate and implement some of their largest and most exciting projects. Video conferencing relieves the burden of requiring everyone to be in the same room and allows the university to reach out on a global scale to potential partners, thus drastically improving the university’s resource pool. In addition, video conferencing allows universities to have more direct and personable contact with these outside partners: Donors can be thanked with a friendly message rather than a form e-mail. External contractors or trustees can be asked to attend planning meetings that they might not be able to attend otherwise. Stakeholders can be included in important decision-making in real time, right from the conference room. Video conferencing opens a world of possibilities to those looking to improve communication at their institution.
Of course, these are not the limits of the uses and capabilities of a technology as extensive as video conferencing. Creativity is the key ingredient to the best, most productive use; thinking critically about how a technology will best work in each particular context will allow IT personnel to cater the technology to that environment. Get creative with your usage, and form will follow function.
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