Virtual classrooms

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Virtual classrooms
by Emma Thoresson, Jeanette Bohman Ulrika
Berglund
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Background

• The name The Virtual Classroom is a
  registered trademark of the New Jersey
  Institute of Technology.
• Starr Roxanne Hiltz came up with the idea in
  1977.
• It started as a project to bring the university
  into the homes and work places of students
  through the use of computers.
• Many have been inspired by this.

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What is a virtual classroom?

• Virtual something whose existence is
  simulated with software
• A teaching and learning environment located
  within a computer-mediated communication
  system.
• All activities and interactions take place
  through the computer instead of face-to-face.

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Who needs it?

• People with a career outside the home.
• People who care for small children.
• Disabled persons.
• etc.

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Why use a virtual classroom?

• Increasing popularity and accessibility of
  the Internet.

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Creating a virtual classroom

• Who will use it and how they will use it?
• Wholly online or a supplement?
• Available for all the Internet users or only to
  those enrolled in the course?

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What is necessary in use of a virtual classroom?

• Well-designed web pages.
• Necessary equipment.

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Three major reasons to use online learning

• Economical
• Efficient learning
• Overcome distances.

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Tools are they flexible and good for deep
learning?

• e-mail
• chat room

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Interactivity in virtual classrooms

• Do the users interact?
• Recreate the physical reality is it the
  right way to go?

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Example Learning Lab

• Develop new ways of teaching.
• Best way to achieve effective learning is
  interaction between students.
• Create a way to work, no matter if you are at
  home or at the university.

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Education at a distance

• Usually refer to the fact that the students are
  at a distance, but the greatest benefits is to
  be able to use teachers at a distance.

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Projects

• Laboratory experiments via Internet
• Fifth dimension

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Laboratory experiments via Internet

• Virtual instruments that look and work like the
  real instruments.
• Measurements done on a real instrument,
  connected to the Internet, controlled by the
  student from a remote client application

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Fifth dimension

• Help children between 7 12 do develop
  their ability to read and communicate.
• Has got funding from the European Union.

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Example The Swedish Net university (Svenska
Nätuniversitetet)

• Collect all distance courses given at all
  universities in one place.
• Students will be able to combine courses from
  different schools in their degree.
• In the future, also courses from universities
  abroad.

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Advantages

• Location students are not limited to courses
  offered in their geographic locality.
• Flexible time students may participate at
  any time of the day.
• More active learning the computer forces
  response and attention.

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Problems

• Limited offerings the choice of courses is
  limited at present.
• Equipment requirements students who do not
  have a computer will have to travel to use the
  necessary equipment.
• Delayed feedback it may be hours until a
  question is answered by the teacher.

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The future

• An option for enhancing education.
• There is a need of providing easier access to
  higher education for working adults
• Due to the development in computer science
  there will be more advanced applications for
  the virtual classroom.

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