The Impact of Video Conferencing on Education
Given the importance of education, it’s no wonder that many technologies find some of their best uses to be in the classroom. One technology that has seen a great amount of use in schools and colleges is video conferencing, which is a method of transferring audio and video in real time between individuals in different locations. Video conferencing allows students to speak with journalists, politicians, scientists, and a variety of other influential people, as well as allowing teachers and professors to interact with students who are in classrooms at different schools or sometimes even in different states or countries. Video conferencing can even allow different groups of students to interact with each other, allowing them to take part in joint projects or to share cultures that they might not otherwise have access to.
Video Conferencing in the Classroom
When most people think of video conferencing, they think of it in terms of major companies speaking with overseas partners or offices which are located across the country. Video conferencing technology isn’t confined simply to business use, of course; a number of primary, secondary, and post-secondary schools make use of video conferencing in some or all of their classrooms in order to allow their students to partake in a wide variety of experiences. This technology can allow the students to interact directly with other classes or important figures who have set aside time to speak with the students in various schools. In some cases the video conferencing events take place in a number of schools simultaneously, so that as many students as possible can take part and have an experience that they will never forget.
Teaching Across the Miles
Another important use of video conferencing is to allow teachers to communicate with students [http://www.polycom-products.com] in different locations who might otherwise not be able to attend classes with that particular teacher or in the subjects that they wish to learn. This is especially popular in a college or university setting, and allows satellite classes to be set up in outlying areas so that the main school can provide their classes to students who may be an hour or more away. This can also allow teachers to easily schedule guest speakers or other teachers from schools across the country or around the world to interact with their class or to provide opinions or input on topics which are being discussed or subjects that are being taught.
Unique Opportunities
As students have more access to video conferencing, they may find themselves having a greater access to unique opportunities as well. It may be possible to take part in special programs via a video feed, which many students would not be able to attend due to distance, cost, or the program being limited to a specific number of people. By adding a video component, programs and opportunities such as these could be opened up to a practically limitless number of people.
Of course, other opportunities may be opened up for students by giving them this sort of exposure to video conferencing technology as well. As the students gain a better understanding of how the technology works and the situations that it can be applied to, they will be better prepared for future situations in the business world in which they may have to work with similar technologies or come up with ideas for how to improve their company’s communications network.