Both tools I have chosen are synchronous but have the option to have a recording made so that it allows others to at least take a passive role in the asynchronous session.
Tool 1: Moodle Chat
Tool 2: Elluminate Live
Both tools are linked in my Moodle course at http://moodle.met.ubc.ca/course/view.php?id=62 in section 2 (http://moodle.met.ubc.ca/course/view.php?id=62&topic=2). Moodle Chat is built into the LMS while Elluminate Live is an external communication tool. Moodle does allow for some integration of Elluminate directly into moodle with regard to calendars and groups however the service is still hosted externally.
Tool 1: Moodle Chat
Moodle Chat can be used for synchronous text meetings with as small to large number of people. It primarily depends on Javascript, but allows the option for a non-Javascript chat client. It requires no installation of programs onto the computer. Moodle Chat has the ability to log and publish chats publically or privately, hold regularly scheduled meetings, be open at all times, and can allow/disallow use based on individual or group types set up in the Moodle Course shell. Three group settings allow for all students to participate in the chat, separate groups where they only see their own group, or visible groups where they work in theirs alone but can see the other groups. The groups feature provides a simple way to keep students from being confused as to where they are supposed to be working. Moodle Chat also integrates into the LMS calendar. If dates and times are set for chat then they appear in the course calendar, and the upcoming events as can be seen here: http://moodle.met.ubc.ca/calendar/view.php?view=day&course=62&cal_d=20&cal_m=6&cal_y=2009#event_213
There are several Youtube videos on Moodle Chat and I’ve embeded one below.
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9PCNym65rYY[/youtube]
Why I chose Moodle Chat
I’ve previously used Moodle Chat with a group in ETEC 510 for communication and planning purposes. I’ve included a copy of one of the chat sessions in my Moodle course available here. I also used it in ETEC 531 for discussion groups that would regularly pass the scheduled hour mark as we were thoroughly engaged in the discussions. Even with a large number of contributors the Moodle Chat was a simple but not completely flawless tool that connected us with limited hassle.
What this tool brings to the educational experience
This tool brings a free and easy to setup synchronous tool that can be used for small to large group discussions. It can also be setup as a tool for synchronous office hours for students using a low speed connection. It provides a recording feature that allows for an asynchronous copy of the chat for group members that could not attend but need to read the transcript. The reading of these transcripts are also logged so instructors using participation as an evaluation tool can easily check for compliance.
Over a short period of time a student’s perspective around a topic can be challenged, changed, or strengthened using synchronous tools such as chat. It can also be helpful in building relationships as the student can interact with their colleagues and instructor in a less structured way than they likely would in a formal forum. It works as well with the User Profile Pictures if your server is setup with a variety of software needed for using pictures with moodle. This enhances the chat as you are quickly able to see who is writing based on their avatar rather than just their name.
What are its limitations
Apon our first use of moodle we found that a poor connection or a temporary loss of connection would occasionally result in dropped students from the chat. This seemed to occur when people were mostly using wireless connections. It is not conclusively linked to the Moodle Chat itself however it was problematic for students with a unrealiable connection. It was easily solved by obtaining a reliable connection and students could easily reconnect to the chat.
A second problem we found in some Moodle Chat environments, but not all, was with links. In many instances when you clicked on a link sent through chat it would drop you from the chat. This was not because the link was targetted inside of the chat window but something that would seem to fail with the Moodle Chat itself. This seemed to be specific to some operating systems and Moodle server version. It was easily solved by copying the link to a second browser.
Does it work?
Yes, the Moodle Chat does work on the UBC server and I have two examples in my Moodle course in section 2 available at http://moodle.met.ubc.ca/course/view.php?id=62&topic=2
Tool 2: Elluminate Live
Elluminate Live is a Java based web meeting room. It has many features that are excellent for meetings, presentations, and classes listed below
- text chat to whole class, breakout group, or individual chat
- moderator/teacher can see all chat
- chat is logged
- guided web tours
- desktop and application sharing
- audio tools allow for all or one to speak.
- video tools allow for participants to share their webcam feed
- white board tool allows for all to utilize multiple whiteboards
- polling tools allow the moderator to pose questions with specific types of polls and students can respond with a click of their mouse
- moderator can post results of polling easily into the whiteboard
- moderator can prepare whiteboard slides before a presentation and control the pace or allow participants to move through them
- moderator can upload PowerPoint slides before the meeting into the whiteboard
- moderator can upload media including documents and video before the meeting
- breakout rooms with full functionality can be assigned to participants with the moderator able to enter each
- newest version (9) allows for phone conferencing through the Elluminate Live shell for better audio quality in some cases and multiple synchronous video sessions
- sessions are recorded and housed externally, or can be downloaded to be housed internally
Why I chose Elluminate Live
I’ve had multiple opportunities to work in Elluminate before as a participant. Last year I was fortunate to teach a hybrid classroom where a student attended from a distance while I taught a full face-to-face class of Physics 12. Along with a Moodle course I was able to bring a rich learning environment to all of my students. Elluminate met my needs as a classroom teacher with almost no setup and a very high degree of functionality and reliability. It was easy and accessible which is the important hurdle that must be met for use by any classroom teacher.
Elluminate is a licensed product whose license is currently paid for by LearnNowBC for educators in British Columbia. My DL school provides me with a year long Elluminate class which makes it easy and accessible. LearnNowBC also provides the ability to book rooms in Elluminate to host meetings.
What this tool brings to the educational experience
I recently participated in a panel discussion regarding ETEC 520 with David Porter, Jeff Miller, Deepika Sharma for the CELC2009 conference at UBC. Deepika and I were both students in ETEC 520 which used WordPress for the CMS. Deepika attended through Elluminate from Pune, India, while I attended from my office in Fort St John, BC. This tool connected us to a learning and professional development opportunity that we would otherwise not been able to attend.
Elluminate does the same in classrooms, meetings, and professional development for many groups from the Ministry of Education, Distributed Learning schools, LearnNowBC, BC Rural Schools etc. This allows for a fully featured classroom to be broadcast to anyone with a DSL connection or higher. It allows for many ways to meet the needs of learners including text, audio, video, and drawing tools. I have used it for physics instruction to students away or at a distance and the feedback has been positive.
Our distributed learning school uses Elluminate for synchronous classrooms that are broadcast throughout BC and Yukon and in some cases around the world for our travelling students. This tool allows for rich learning anywhere, anytime.
What are its limitations
Elluminate records in a proprietary recording format (vcr extension). This does not allow for easy editing of final recordings. While this is not always necessary it would be easier to integrate directly into a LMS if it were an open format.
LearnNowBC also announced this year that Elluminate rooms that it facilitiates will stale date recordings. This means that recordings older than a year will be deleted from their servers. Teacheres or DL schools wishing to keep these records will need to download and store them locally.
Occassionally there are some operating system related problems that require a specific version of Java to have a higher running priority over other versions of Java present on the student computer. There are simple solutions that a teacher could walk a student through on the phone or through the use of another synchronous tool such as Moodle Chat, or Skype.
Does it work?
Yes. I’ve added three links on my Moodle course in section 2 available at http://moodle.met.ubc.ca/course/view.php?id=62&topic=2. The first two are links to enter my current Elluminate classroom as a participant or as a moderator to get a feel for some differences afforded to the roles. The third link is a recording of a lesson that I prepared last year while I was at a conference for my students to view the next day. The students were well used to the routine of turning on the projector, logging into the computer/Moodle site and would simply click on the link to watch the lesson.
Reflection
I’ve tried to include my reflection above where appropriate regarding the tools. Both tools are free to the students and currently free to the educators using them. While Elluminate has a cost it is not seen by the classroom teacher, school, or their district at the moment. While the price is not always the best gauge of whether a tool is most appropriate, it is a major influence in selection of tools in the K-12 sector. The two tools, Elluminate and Moodle Chat, are very different in the fact that one is extremely high featured and the other does a single task. Both are simple to use with Elluminate having some things with a higher level of complexity depending on the desired outcome. Simplicity and accessiblity as I mentioned are critical in selecting tools for the classroom. If the server is regularly unavailable, or does not work without a considerable amount of time or knowledge it will be quickly abandoned. The technology graveyard in schools can easily be judged by the items that are shuffled off into corners and are covered in dust. While both of these tools are not physical there use would quickly end if either of the conditions are not met.
With Elluminate in my classroom I set up my computer to connect to my Elluminate room as well as my Bluetooth headset. I could walk into my class, log in, and be ready to start teaching everyday before the bell rang. There was only one day out of the 90 classes that I had difficulty and that was due to an internet connection that was resolved a few minutes into the class.
For Moodle Chat my groups were able to quickly create a chat room with a couple click and some description. We could then use this chatroom whenever we needed and it would automatically record our sessions for group members not able to attend synchronously. Again it was easy and accessible. The SECTIONS model for selecting technology has been an excellent tool for use in the selection of these communication tools.
Students: our students and teachers have the facilities available to them to use these tools
Ease of Use: high level of user acceptance and testing locally has shown ease of use
Cost: Zero to the school district
Teaching and Learning: Most important thing with these tools is having a skilled facilitator/teacher guiding the lessons
Interactivity: Moodle Chat has a single minded purpose but does it very well. Elluminate is highly interactive with multiple affordances and ways to meet learners needs
Organizational Issues: Limited, if a Moodle Server works, Moodle Chat works. If Java is installed on the computer Elluminate should work.
Novelty: Chat has been around for quite a while but still heavily used by many groups. Elluminate remains a novelty for many not involved in DL
Speed: Both are very fast and light weight but work best in high speed environments. Take very little to setup: 5min – 20min if you needed to book an Elluminate room.
References
Bates, A.W. & Poole, G. (2003). Chapter 4: a Framework for Selecting and Using Technology. In Effective Teaching with Technology in Higher Education: Foundations for Success. (pp. 77-105). San Francisco: Jossey Bass Publishers.
Jarrod Bell