Seminar on Teleconferencing

TELECONFERENCING

The word ‘tele’ means distance. The word ‘conference’ means consultations, discussions. Teleconferencing is an umbrella term that describes an electronic link or meeting between participants at two or more locations. Through teleconferencing two or more locations situated at a distance are connected so that they can hear or both see and hear each other. It allows the distant sites to interact with each other and with the teaching end through phone, fax, and e- mail. The interactions occur in real time. This means that the learners/participants and the resource persons are present at the same time in different locations and are able to communicate with each other. In some situations, questions can be faxed/e- mailed early for response by the resource persons.

Uses of Teleconferencing

·        Education

·        Training and Development

·        Business/Corporate Communication

·        Governance

·        Medical Courses/Services etc

It is an important device of our overall communications system and is emerging as a valuable tool for education and business meetings. Like any communication technology, the application of teleconferencing in the teaching-learning process will depend on the accessibility, cost and pedagogic effectiveness of the technological configuration being used.

Nevertheless, if systematically designed, planned, implemented and utilized, the teleconferencing sessions can provide valuable resource to the students learning at a distance.

Strengths of Teleconferencing

·        Accessible to Geographically Dispersed Groups

·        Communication at National/Regional/Local Level Quality

·        Teaching using multiple Teaching Resources

·        Real Time Interaction from Remote Target Groups

·        Use of Various Teaching Methods enhances Learning

·        Cost Effective

Types of Teleconferencing

Teleconferencing means meeting through a telecommunications medium. It is a generic term for linking people between two or more locations by electronics. There are different types of teleconferencing such as :

AUDIO CONFERENCING

Audio Conferencing is a two way voice communication among multiple locations in real time. This generally operates through public telephone network. Individual microphones for participants and external speakers at each location are employed in professional systems to carry out conferences in hands free manner. The number of people that you can connect to would depend on your service provider’s capabilities. In any case it could vary from 3 to 30 beyond which it becomes an Audio Broadcast.

AUDIOGRAPHICS TELECONFERENCE

Uses narrowband telecommunications channels to transmit visual information such as graphics, alpha-numerics, documents, and video pictures as an adjunct to voice communication. Other terms are desk-top computer conferencing and enhanced audio. Devices include electronic tablets/boards, freeze-frame video terminals, integrated graphics systems (as part of personal computers), Fax, remote-access microfiche and slide projectors, optical graphic scanners, and voice/data terminals.

Audiographics can be used for meetings and distance learning.

COMPUTER TELECONFERENCE

Uses telephone lines to connect two or more computers and modems. Anything that can be done on a computer can be sent over the lines. It can be synchronous or asynchronous. An example of an asychronous mode is electronic mail. Using electronic mail (E-Mail), memos, reports, updates, newsletters can be sent to anyone on the local area network (LAN) or wide area network (WAN). Items generated on computer which are normally printed and then sent by facsimile can be sent by E-Mail.

Computer conferencing is an emerging area for distance education. Some institutions offer credit programs completely by computer. Students receive texts and workbooks via mail. Through common files assigned to a class which each student can assess, teachers upload syllabi, lectures, grades and remarks. Students download these files, compose their assignment and remarks off-line, then upload them to the common files. 

Students and instructors are usually required to log on for a prescribed number of days during the week. Interaction is a large component of the students' grades.

Through computers, faculty, students and administrators have easy access to one another as well as access to database resources provided through libraries. The academic resources of libraries and special resources can be accessed such as OCLC, ERIC, and Internet.

Administrators can access student files, retrieve institutional information from central repositories such as district or system offices, government agencies, or communicate with one another. Other resources can be created such as updates on state or federal legislation.

VIDEO CONFERENCING

Video conferencing in its most basic form is the transmission of image (video) and speech (audio) back and forth between two or more physically separate locations.”

In this system students can see the teacher or both the teacher and the students can see each other. Depending on the use of technology, there can be two types of video conferencing. They are:

1. Two-way video conferencing

In the two-way video conferencing students can see and hear the teacher and fellow students located at different learning Centers and can learn in an interactive environment and exchange views/ideas.

A primary advantage of the two-way video conferencing lies in its replication of a face-to-face meeting. Students can react to each other's body language and visual clues in interpersonal transactions. A two-way video conferencing can accommodate a range of information, including graphics and possibly scanned documents. The video conferencing can be either motion or non- motion operations.

Two-way video conferencing is a costly affair. We need to create the necessary infrastructure to transmit and receive visual signals at both the learning and the teaching centers. Besides, we have to equip the teaching and the learning ends with camera crew and technical staff to manage the two-way video conferencing. 5

Point-to-point Conferences

A videoconference that connects two locations. Each site sees and hears the other sites at all times

Multipoint Conferences

A videoconference that connects to more than two sites through the use of a multi-point control unit. Participants at all sites can hear one another at all times and see the site that is currently speaking.

2. One-way video conferencing:

In one-way video conferencing, the audio- video information can be one-way information or can be a one-way stream from the institution/teaching end to its learning centers or schools. These centers or schools may communicate with the teaching end in turn, with a telephone or other audio-based hookup. The connection can be used for question and answer sessions the discussion on relevant points and for the clarification of specific details.

The potential of one-way video conferencing (point-to-multi-points) has been demonstrated in India through various experiments conducted by some educational institutions. The system can be used for teaching different topics, including sciences.

Advantages of Teleconferencing in Education

 Remote Learning

One of the most apparent advantages of teleconferencing in education is remote learning. Students no longer have to feel confined to their classrooms. With teleconferencing, they can reap the benefits of knowledge from all over the globe. They can interact with experts, students from other schools, and visit places they have never visited at the push of a button. With teleconferencing, educators can make themselves available even when they are not at the school. This means they can lecture students who might need their help outside office hours, or collaborate with other experts and specialists without them having to be in the same classroom.

 Strengthen Exchanges among Schools

Weeks after a devastating earthquake struck Haiti in 2010, hundreds of high school students from New Orleans in Louisiana gathered at Fisher to discuss with students from New American School in Haiti’s capital Port-au-Prince. The students shared terrifying experiences, messages of hope and encouragement, as they bonded over a video conference initiated by the Global Nomads Group. Most schools are using the technology to connect with students from other schools. This presents a great opportunity for students to connect with other students that they would possibly never meet otherwise.

 Invite Experts to the Class Wherever They Are

With teleconferencing in education, boring classroom learning is a thing of the past. The technology gives educators new and exciting ways to teach their students. For instance, the technology allows teachers to invite guest speakers into the class to help illustrate important points in her lesson. This allows for an interactive experience for students with experts that boast a wealth of skills in the field being discussed. As well all know, specialists often have busy schedules. As such, teleconferencing is a better option as it can reduce travel time and simplify visits. Using this technology, a major college in a rural area was able to connect chemist specials with students undertaking the course for a detailed workshop.

 Class from Home

Another use of teleconferencing in education is that it allows students attend class from home. Sometimes students may miss classes due to illness or challenges related to living in remote areas. Teleconferencing gives these students a real chance to attend classes from their homes, meaning they won’t fall behind in class. This also works perfect for educators as staff meetings can be done through teleconferencing. This simply means that staff members can cut straight to the live meeting and eliminate the unnecessary travelling and stress. The meeting can also be recorded and passed to staff members who were unable to take part in the live meeting

Benefits of Videoconference-based Learning

 Closely resembles traditional classroom-based education

 permits learners to be active participants in the process

 Faculty and staff needs can be met more quickly through just-in-time training

 More faculty and staff can be trained faster without increasing training resources

 Guest lecturers can be easily integrated into the course

Limitations of Videoconferencing

The absence of QOS (Quality of Service) provides virtually no guarantee of a satisfying and successful experience

 Though the technology is improving, a successful videoconference is dependent upon the connections and technologies at all of the participating sites, AND the network infrastructure

 Security issues