the virtual classroom within a blended learning context

____________________________________________________________________ THE VIRTUAL CLASSROOM WITHIN A BLENDED LEARNING CONTEXT: USING SYNCHRONOUS CONFERENCING AS A SUPPORT TOOL. Giorgio Agosti,eLearning Manager, Abb Group Service Center, Italy Enrico Cavalli, Adriana Gnudi, Agostino Lorenzi, Lucia Malvisi, Università degli Studi di Bergamo, Italy

________________________________________________________________________________ Abstract

The University of Bergamo has been delivering a computer module with a blended learning element for three years. Last year through a partnership with ABB Italia, a “Virtual Classroom” was established whereby synchronous events were scheduled using video conferencing technology. We were interested to see what impact this had on the students, especially as in a blended learning module the students have face to face sessions with the lecturer. We wondered whether the synchronous event would have any value and if so what? This paper describes the experience both in qualitative and quantitative terms, from the students and lecturer perspective.

e-learning and different types of university students

Approximately 30% of the students enrolled at the Faculty of Economics at the University of Bergamo, also work full or part-time. The University’s e-learning programme has specially targeted these students and has been developed as a support to traditional classroom lectures, thereby falling under the category of blended learning. Courses are created with lectures held in the evening combined with a significant on-line element so that working students may better organise their own time and other commitments. However, we should be aware that the category of student-worker also includes those who return to study after some years absence or those who choose to frequent shorter University courses in order to enhance their own professional career development. As Mintzberg noted, (2004) students now call for more intermingling of real world experience with the learning process Most all fall into the category of mature students and have only enrolled and continued with courses where they have found the support and flexibility they need to complete their studies. Amongst these mature students, we perceive a different mentality towards their study, their peers and their teachers (Cavalli and Lorenzi, 2000) whereby they expect a more collaborative and interactive environment. Student-workers often enrich a course by bringing to it real life situations encountered in a professional environment and by incorporating these into course, the teaching becomes more student centred. As noted by Stacey, learners seems keen to share resources, advice and literature in an electronic environment (Stacey, 1999) As well as changing didactic processes, teaching methods themselves are changing to accommodate a different type of student. Students and teachers work together to create a course that more relevant and fluid. This type of learning experience is particularly reinforced within a blended learning mode where the mix of physical contact with lecturers and other students is reinforced by on-line support through forums, discussion rooms and synchronous activities.

Synchronous activities and e-learning

ICT technologies have produced a range of tools that enhance the learning experience through a virtual environment. The most common ones in use in a Higher Education context are: Synchronous: chat (both text based, but also audio and video) and “virtual classrooms”. Asynchronous: email, discussion rooms, electronic files. It is worth noting that the development of synchronous activities is a relatively recent phenomenon compared to asynchronous activities as more users now have high speed/ low cost internet access. Use of a “virtual classroom” (that is, real time classes held over the Internet) is particularly stimulating for the students as the dynamics of a traditional classroom are reproduced and students can see, hear and interact with each other and their lecturer as they would in the physical world (Hilz, 1997).

The partnership between Bergamo University and ABB Italia

ABB Italia is the Italian subdivision of the ABB Group. ABB is a global leader in power and automation technologies that enable utility and industry customers to improve their performance while lowering environmental impact. The ABB Group of companies operates in around 100 countries and employs about 103,000 people. Sensitive to the needs and expectations of the market within which it operates, ABB Italia decided to finance a initiative to support teaching within the economics degree delivered by Bergamo University (Agosti, 2005). Like many other large companies, ABB Italia is aware of the difficulties student who also work have in organising their time in order to fulfil both employment and study obligations. It was decided that together with the University of Bergamo, ABB would share its expertise in the field of flexible teaching tools. The University of Bergamo is a small public university in Italy, enrolling approximately 14,000 students annually. The university offers a wide variety of opportunities for training and research through 18 three-year degree courses and 11 two-year specialization courses in arts and philosophy, economics and business administration, engineering, foreign languages and literature, and law. The university offers elearning courses as support for the traditional classroom, linking its teachers with online multimedia. Teachers can choose from a variety of learning approaches to deliver course materials, and they can use the software’s powerful authoring tool to create courses on their own, without programming skills. The university’s e-learning environment currently supports 1,000 users, all who fit within the blended learning model. The University has favoured blended learning over complete distance courses in that most of its students are not remote and have shown that they do want some face-to-face contact with lecturers and peers. It is hoped that a “greater reliance on technology might result in several benefits: (a) equivalent or improved instruction, (b) an engaged model of learning, (c) accelerated completion of courses, (d) self-paced or personalized instruction (e) reduced dropout and re-enrolments in the same courses, and (f) reduction of course duplication and redundancy” (Marsh et al 2003). In this case study, the collaboration was born of the experience, technology and commitment that ABB has in the management and production of synchronous e-learning courses and a well-established e-learning structure at Bergamo University. The Economics Faculty at the University was able to use the ABB Virtual Classroom software through the Interwise platform. This allows lecturers to prepare and then deliver a lecture or tutorial on the Web with students who are linked through their offices or their homes, be it in Italy, or as happened on this particular course, abroad. Initially the students showed some apprehension brought about by the newness and technological characteristics of the Virtual Classroom. However, once they had experimented they began to appreciate the new possibilities available to interact with both lecturer and fellow students. The Virtual Classroom provided by ABB Italy (and powered by Interwise) operates synchronously, i.e. teacher and students have to be present concurrently. The application used is extremely user friendly and the students access the sessions through a Virtual Classroom portal on Internet (Figure 1).

The Virtual Classroom within a Computing module.

What we call Virtual Classroom is a software application that simulates the interactivities and behavior occurring in a traditional class; namely presentation of materials, brainstorming, questioning, polling and sharing of documents/resources. All these activities are carried out with the support of voice communication (VOIP) which enables a very natural kind of interactivity among participants. The Virtual Classroom works in the same way as a regular lesson, that is the lecturer creates a weekly session and any students who wants to participate enrols so that the lecturer knows who will be present. It was decided to make enrolment in the Virtual Classroom optional so that students could decide to participate at the last minute. However, students were asked that if they did enrol in a particular session that they guarantee their presence even if, being student workers, they may have had other commitments to attend to. This was rarely the case in the study described here and a constant presence of a student cohort meant that the lessons were enriched by student interventions. Each session was scheduled for one hour, however most lasted almost two hours due to the interest exhibited by the students. This of course is another positive factor of a synchronous event out of office hours. One is not inhibited by time pressures. As mentioned the Interwise software can be used both online and offline, so that any student who has the software can review previous Virtual Classroom sessions that have been made available by the lecturer. This is a vital component for various reasons: • Students can revisit parts of the lessons that they had difficulty comprehending. • Students who did not actively participate in a session can watch recordings. • Lecturers can go over sessions and be more aware of the problems and difficulties faced by the students.

•

A wealth of material is created that can be used in subsequent modules.

Figure 1: The Virtual Classroom portal

On entering the session, while the connection is made to a communication server, the participant system is checked and, if the communication software is not installed, an automatic installation starts. When connecting to the event the material prepared by the teacher for the session is temporarily downloaded onto the student’s local machine. In this way the performance of the teacher-student interaction during the live session is greatly improved as most of the time materials are accessed that are present locally and not transmitted in real time from the teacher’s desk. Even participants using a traditional dial-up connection to the network can very well take part in live online sessions. In short in order to participate all a user needs is internet connectivity, a sound card for voice reception and transmission, a microphone and loudspeakers. Because the system downloads everything onto a local network there are less technical problems. This is vital in an online environment. We have seen that if students have a difficult experience with technology on an e-learning module then they are more likely to give up this type of study and move back to the “safe” mode of classroom delivery. Therefore it is vital to try and have as few technical problems as possible. The only drawback we found for this technology is that, presently, it operates with Microsoft Windows based clients, therefore all users utilizing Apple Macintosh can take part in the sessions only when running their systems in a Windows simulation mode (which downgrades the performance for these users). The experience in this course proved that the technology was extremely efficient and easy to use, an important factor for both students and lecturers who may feel that their technical skills are not up to the task of participating in a video conferencing session. A few students experienced some technical difficulties due to an insufficient band width. However they were still able to follow the class in a text form and so the session was not interrupted. On the contrary of what many people may think, the use of voice during synchronous interaction does requiring the participants to be connected to a High Speed internet network. The Virtual Classroom was part of a first year computing module within the Economics Faculty as an optional extra within the e-learning part of the blended learning mode. This course is available in two delivery modes; the first is a traditional mode of classroom lectures which demand a physical presence on the part of the student, the second is delivered in blended learning mode with a mix of evening lectures and online support. 87 students enrolled in the second mode, 95% of whom were also in employment. 44 of these students activated participated in the on-line part of the course by posting messages and other contributions, while 25 students actively took part in the Virtual Classroom. The Virtual Classroom was held 12 times in the second part of the courses and sessions were always scheduled for the evening. The lecturer used the Virtual Classroom as a support tool, rather than a replacement to traditional lectures. As shown in Figure 2, questions would initially be posted in the discussion room by the lecturer and students invited to post comments, ideas etc. After some time the lecturer would again post on the discussion board in order to

develop the question further and finally would use all the material collected in a Virtual Classroom session. In this way the on-line part of the courses assumed a homogeneity and became a cohesive and distinct support to the module as opposed to a series of disjointed postings as can happen with a purely asynchronous environment. The use of the Virtual Classroom allowed students to focus on certain topics and each session remains recorded so that students can revisit any topics they are unfamiliar with.

Figure 2: The move from an asynchronous to a synchronous environment

Observations on using the Virtual Classroom experience

Initially students were wary of participating with new ideas or topics, but rather seemed to ask the lecturer to repeat explanations or go over topics already described, suggesting that at the start they were not listening to or reading other people’s interventions. However, as the course progressed, students became more used to interacting with each other and the lecturer in an on-line community and their interventions became much more creative and personal. Participation and attention in the Virtual Classroom were considerably heightened compared to a regular lecture. Students were more active in subsequent weeks and seemed to have retained more than they would have done in a traditional lecture. Less distractions and more interest were generated by the Virtual Classroom. Comments made by students on the Virtual Classrooms included: • These lessons are an excellent way to remove and doubts or uncertainties I had. I feel like the lecturer is more aware of me and that I have more contact with the other students. • I took part in a Virtual Classroom session last week and I found it very interesting. My questions were answered indirectly by other students and I am sorry that I didn’t take part in any classes before. • I am very pleased with this type of teaching. It allows me to take part properly from places that suit me. I wish more lessons could be done like this. Some problems were experienced with the download and use of the software necessary to run the Virtual Classroom, principally because not all the students had high enough connection speeds. Some problems were resolved as the course progressed but they continued through the module and this may have influenced the numbers of students who actively participated. We could draw some conclusions by reviewing the final marks of the students on the module as a whole. The general average for all the students who took the course was 23.3 (out of a maximum of 30) and the average of the students who enrolled on the blended learning course is relatively coherent with that at 22.5. However if we look at the students who also participated in the Virtual Classroom the average rises to 26. We can

ascertain that those who took part in the Virtual Classroom did better than those who did not. 91% of the students who participated in the Virtual Classroom then proceeded to pass the final course exam.

“Customer Satisfaction”

At the end of the course a questionnaire was distributed to all the students who took part in the blended learning mode in order to assess their reaction to this type of study. Students were encouraged to give both positive and negative comments. Students were asked why they decided to enrol on the blended learning mode and all cited work and time commitments. Furthermore 10% also said that family commitments made traditional study difficult. Only 3 students said that their main reason was due to difficulty of access to the University because they lived too far away. In effect most of Bergamo University’s students live within a short distance to the university, showing that these are not traditional “distance” students and therefore a mixed mode where both a physical presence and an on-line component is available perfectly suits their needs and situation. Most students log on to access on-line materials, both in the form of lecture notes and as extra materials to their studies. Downloading materials at home when one has time commitments is a valuable resource an online community can provide. Students also appreciated the fact that they could undergo tests and exercises throughout the course at their own speed as an important reason for logging into the course and most students said they logged into the course at least once a day. With particular reference to the Virtual Classroom, 90% of respondents said that they found the service “excellent” with regards to both the quality of transmissions and the contents of the sessions. Almost 100% of the students said that they greatly appreciated the availability of the Virtual Classroom, especially in that one could watch recordings of previous sessions. This comment echoes other comments made as regards time management and the availability of materials. Students who have other commitments need the flexibility to review materials as and when they wish. Many students also commented on the fact that they felt that the lecturer made herself very available within the on-line environment and dedicated a great deal of time to the students, both in the asynchronous mode and in the Virtual Classroom. Negative comments tended to focus on lengthy connection time and the related costs. However many students indicated that they logged in using ADSL or IDSN connections. Virtual Classroom sessions were held in the evenings when costs are generally lower. Blended learning certainly shows itself to be an environment particularly suited to students who have serious commitments apart from their studies but who are also able to frequent the University on occasion. It maintains a physical contact which allows that student to keep up interest and focus on the course, while providing an alternative support environment that the student can control in the hours that suit him or her best.

Student Evaluation of the Virtual Classroom

Many students added personal comments to the questionnaires they completed, especially with regards to the use of the Virtual Classroom. Most had not come across this type of technology before and despite initial reservations found it to be a valuable learning tool. One topic on which comments focused on was the flexibility of the Virtual Classroom and the ability to use it as a tool that enhances time management issues: • The Virtual Classroom is a great resource for those of us who hold down jobs and have little free time to dedicate to studying. • I found that logging in from home helps me concentrate more and means I use my time more effectively. • I found it easier to focus on the Virtual Classroom instead of the real classroom where there are a lot of distractions. Another topic focused on the fact that fact that students could access the Virtual Classroom at any time to view recording of sessions: • I found that I listened to the recordings of the Virtual Classroom over again as it really helped with my studying. • I missed a few classes and it was helpful to be able to go over lessons. • Students can go over recordings when they are free of work commitments. • I used it some time later to go other themes that I needed to clarify.

Lecturer experience

The experience of the lecturer in the Virtual Classroom is also of significance. In this scenario an intense communication was established where single interventions are highly valued thanks to the greater attention paid by all participants within the session. Materials are prepared by the lecturer based on students requests and difficulties. Within the Virtual Classroom, time is “expanded” as the lecturer was able to concentrate her comments giving a huge amount of focused information and replying to real questions and problems put forward by students. As mentioned above, the students were so interested that sessions lasted much longer than scheduled. Space is also expanded. The use of different programs allows lecturer and students to move into different environments changing their mind set every time. This can happen in the traditional lecture hall. However in a virtual context the lecturer accompanies the students on their road of discovery rather than forces them to go where she would like. Obviously to make the most use of this facility a lecturer needs to be willing to listen and also needs to be able to pick up faint signs of distress that come from the students. It is imperative not to allow anyone to remain inactive for too long and therefore it is vital that the session is interspersed with questions, observations and suggestions. It is only in this way that a session can proceed dynamically with as few misunderstandings as possible.

Conclusion

We found that the Virtual Classroom had an extremely positive effect within the blended learning element of the course. Despite the students having the possibility of face to face time with the lecturer, they participated enthusiastically in the synchronous sessions. The lecturer also reported a much more intense and productive session within the Virtual Classroom than in the actual classroom and has chosen to use this technology again in this year’s course. References 1. AGOSTI G (2004) Esperienze di formazione a distanza in ABB Italia, AEI, 2004 2. AGOSTI G (2005) A fianco dell’università, RIVISTA SPAZIO ABB, 1, 2005 3. CAVALLI E., LORENZI A., (2000) Metologia e tecnologia per l’e-learning. Tecnologie dell’Informazione e delle Communicazione come motore di sviluppo del Paese. From XXXVIII Congress AICA, Taormina, 2000 4. HILZ S.R. (1997) Supporting collaborative learning in Asynchronous Learning Networks. Invited Keynote for the UNESCO/Open University Symposium on Virtual Learning Environments and the role of the Teacher, England, April, 1997 5. MARSH G.E MCFADDEN A.C. BARRIE J P. Blended Instruction: Adapting Conventional Instruction for Large Classes Online Journal of Distance Learning Administration Winter 2003 - Volume VI, Number IV 6. MINTZBERG, H. (2004) “ Managers not MBA' s ”, San Francisco : Barrett-Koehler. 7. STACEY E: Collaborative Learning in an Online Environment. Journal of Distance Education/Revue de l’enseignment a distance, Vol. XIV No. 2 Fall/Automne 1999 Dott. Giorgio Agosti Abb Group Service Centre Via Lama 33, 20099 Sesto San Giovanni (MI) Italy email: [email protected]

Dott.ssa A. Gnudi, L.Malvisi, E. Cavalli, A. Lorenzi Università degli studi di Bergamo Via dei Canina 24100 Bergamo Italy email : (adriana.gnudi, enrico.cavalli, lucia.malvisi, agostino.lorenzi) @unibg.it