Elluminate
What is a virtual classroom?
Let’s face it. Many people come to the teaching profession because they like the immediate contact of working with students. So for many the experience of teaching online has not been particularly attractive.
Similarly for learners the experience can be isolating. Virtual classroom technologies like Elluminate offer you opportunities to providing a more human, real time interaction than would be possible in a platform like WebCT. It is possible to give learners a sense of intimacy with you, their teacher, and fellow learners. It also allows you to offer immediate support and counselling to learners. Finally these technologies allow you to build greater interactivity into your online learning programs and to include remote experts in the delivery.
Features of a virtual classroom platform like Elluminate
- includes live audio communication between teachers and learners
- can include graphic material like Powerpoint which is broadcast to all participants
- a shared whiteboar d space for text and drawing
- may include video options
- may include shar ed software applications
- you can share some of the programs running on your machine and do demos
- you can request control of the participant’s machines and actually drive any program they are having trouble w ith
- allows opportunities to bring in an online guest presenter from anywhere in the world
- participants can be broken up into ‘break-out rooms’ for group work
- allows teachers to co-facilitate classes
- learners and teachers can engage in collaborative national and international projects
- the proceedings can be recorded and archived
These types of features will be invaluable for many teaching programs where regular meeting face to face is difficult or impossible. But choose wisely and only schedule Elluminate sessions when they are a good alternative to face to face or WebCT.
So What is Elluminate?
Elluminate Live! is an interactive, live e-learning and Web conferencing tool for small groups—it is built specifically for interactive, multimedia collaboration.
Swinburne has it’s own Elluminate classrooms which you can book through our FLexible Learning Advisors. It is a great start to get your own free ‘VRoom’ to practise in. You can invite up to 3 people in it and use it for meetings or just to practise in. You have all the moderator rights to load your Power Point shows on, WebShare etc but you cannot record the sessions.
Features of a virtual classroom platform like Elluminate
- includes live audio communication between teachers and learners
- can include graphic material like Powerpoint which is broadcast to all participants
- a shared whiteboard space for text and drawing
- may include video options
- may include shared software applications
- you can share some of the programs running on your machine and do demos
- you can request control of the participant’s machines and actually drive any program they are having trouble with
- allows opportunities to bring in an online guest presenter from anywhere in the world
- participants can be broken up into ‘break-out rooms’ for group work
- allows teachers to co-facilitate classes
- learners and teachers can engage in collaborative national and international projects
- the proceedings can be recorded and archived
…. and from the expert
These types of features will be invaluable for many teaching programs where regular meeting face to face is difficult or impossible. But choose wisely and only schedule Elluminate sessions when they are a good alternative to face to face or WebCT.
User guides for Elluminate: http://www.elluminate.com/support/docs/7.0/moderator.jsp
2 Comments
October 3rd, 2008 at 12:59 am
HI everyone,
Have just had my first look at swinblogger and the topic written by Jenny Wood relating to the virtual classroom and what is Elluminate? Fantastic article and brilliant blogging site, so good in fact, that I thought I might try and contribute some ideas and points on Elluminate that may assist others.
I have now been using Elluminate for some time, delivering the Certificate IV- Training & Assessment to a variety of clients located across the continent and its varying time zones. It wasn’t always pretty and may mistakes and difficulties were experienced along the way but the outcome has been nothing short using a very cost effective and efficient method for delivering course content in a manner that is flexible to suit the needs of the client group.
Learning from those experiences already encountered, I thought that through swinblogger, it would be an ideal avenue to share some Tips that assist you in your journey with Elluminate.
Tips:
Prepare all your resources such as slides, templates, web links, handouts, and prior to commencing your session in Elluminate
Create a running sheet which lists the activities that you intend to undertake, the resource that you will use at that time and the time allocation for each of the activities. (I am happy to provide templates and examples of my running sheets – just contact myself via Jenny Wood or the other flexible learning team)
Trials run your program and verify your running sheet before you start. This can be done using your own Vroom.
Recommend that if you are going to use Elluminate on a regular basis you set up a specific PC or Laptop and ensure that Elluminate works properly on it. I found the best way initially was to load my free version of Vroom. It made it easier when the time came to run the link provided by Flexible Learning
When you book your Elluminate room through your Flexible learning advisor, you will be given the link to the session time and as the moderator, you will have access to the program 30 minutes prior to participants being able to log on. Use this time to set up your files and do some pre checks that everything is working OK (especially audio).
Get yourself a good set of headphones with built in microphone, with adjustment controller and on / off switch on the cable. (Remember to turn on the switch)
Following the link provided by Jenny to the user guides for Elluminate, I would suggest that you download the main guides and then laminated them and have them with you when you run a session. You would be amazed how often you will refer to them during a session. Especially when you are new to the program.
I always run my sessions from a PC but I set up my laptop next to it and send the session link to myself, so that I can connect as a participant. This allows me to see what is happening in the virtual environment as a participant and I can quickly see if there are any problems that may need to be addressed.
When you first start out, I would suggest that you only run sessions with 6 participants and work up to a larger group. My experience has shown that a group of 12 to 15 is more than enough to handle comfortably and any more than that, I would suggest you ask for a co-moderator to assist you.
For session times to be effective, I recommend that you do not run a session past 60 minutes, as it becomes difficult to engage, motivate your participants.
Sessions should be carefully broken into segments and it is imperative that you include activities that the participants can complete rather than just present slides. At the end of the session you should leave time for review, feedback and opportunity for questions. I found this time the most informative and productive with my groups. A 60 minute session would be structured with an introduction / welcome period at the beginning to allow participants to set up and fine tune. Followed by content and activities and concluding with at least 10 minutes for review, feedback and questions.
IF you are going to use Elluminate with a client group, my suggestion would be (if feasible) to run an introductory session first where you can familiarise your group with Elluminate, iron out any bugs, sort out connectivity issues etc. I have run and costed these session with my client groups and found it invaluable, because the first Elluminate session where content was delivered went without any problems, as the problems had already be rectified.
Following on from the last tip, it also pays to send out details and system requirements to your participants via email prior to the introductory session, so that they can start to get their own equipment ready. Example: headsets.
These are just a few tips to start you off and I am happy to provide more as time and experience progresses.
Elluminate to me provides another avenue to deliver and facilitate content as part of a blended strategy and I am happy provide my resources and experience if it can be of use.
Maybe Jenny and the other flexible learning team can develop a Toolbox or kit where we can all store common resources etc for use by all in Elluminate. It’s only an idea.
Enjoy your experience with Elluminate and I hope to meet up with you in one of our many virtual environments
Nic Van Wamel
NvanWamel@swin.edu.au
[Reply]
March 29th, 2009 at 5:26 pm
[...] real-time events are delivered using Elluminate complete with audio, chat and desktop [...]
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