Drexel technology connects students, professors
Nathan Fried
Issue date: 4/24/09 Section: News
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"Advancing academic effectiveness through incorporation of appropriate technologies is a core aspect of the Drexel mission," Michael Scheuermann, associate vice president for Instructional Technology Support, said.
Drexel has recently seen a large increase in the utilization of these new technologies within the classroom, connecting student and teacher in ways never before anticipated.
"The students are the real benefactors of all of this activity, and with IRT as a partner, [the] faculty [is] expanding the choices and their effectiveness on an ongoing basis," Scheuermann said.
Smart boards, Web casting, iTunesU, Camtasia and Impatica are all new program applications that have been integrated into the classroom. Drexel has also implemented new video conferencing between Sacramento and University City campuses.
Janice Biros, vice provost for Budget, Planning and Administration, said "IRT has set up a beautiful, state-of-the-art high-definition video conferencing room in Korman and it's schedulable by anybody. I think that faculty are seeing the advantages of video conferencing for not just teaching in Sacramento, but also having joint courses with any place in the world."
IRT hosted a workshop April 14 featuring the experiences of Drexel professors Anna Cianci and Frank Lennehan using video conferencing to teach students in Sacramento. As part of their presentation, they stepped faculty through the process of setting up a single classroom on both sides of the country and connecting the two via live streaming audio and video.
Each classroom has two cameras, screens in the front and back and also a portable unit so the class in Sacramento can see the instructor in Philadelphia and vice versa. The instructor from one side can zoom in on certain areas of the classroom to speak to individuals or to observe how a group is working.
This enables a faculty member to teach to a classroom full of students in University City while students in a "parallel" classroom located in Sacramento can not only listen in, but also actively participate by asking questions or discussing topics with the entire class. This technology is not limited to just teachers, but can also be accessed and utilized by students and student organizations.
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