 "Photo: SHOLTEN SINGER")
Marshall’s new technology allows students to attend class without physically being in the classroom.
Wimba Classroom is a two-way communication program that uses video, audio and chat tools to make the classroom available to students anywhere they have internet access, according to the Web site.
Tracy Christofero, professor in the College of Information Technology and Engineering, began using Wimba Classroom last fall as a retention tool because some of her students were moving away from the area.
“Primarily with graduate students, I’m concerned that they take jobs and have to move away, or they do a lot of travel,” Christofero said. “It’s a borderless education because you don’t physically have to sit in a brick-and-mortar building.”
The Wimba Classroom is not so much for electronic courses but for students who have to miss live classes, said Monica Brooks, assistant vice president for information technology.
“If your professor is delivering that class using the Wimba live classroom, you could still be at home or at the airport,” she said. “As long as you have the Internet, you could still participate in that class.”
Marty Laubach, professor of sociology, uses Wimba Classroom primarily for its service to his night class students’ convenience.
“People who take later night classes tend to be more professional, and they tend to be students who have kids.” Laubach said. “There can be a million reasons why they might have to stay home.
“I have a lot of students who are calling in from home and from dorms, especially this semester, because of the swine flu,” Laubach said.
Christofero uses Wimba Classroom for group work.
“I can throw students out into these break-out rooms where they can then talk to each other either through the chat feature or through the video conference,” Christofero said.
Wimba Classroom can be used in many different ways.
Karen Mitchell, professor of mathematics, teaches a virtual class and uses only the whiteboard and the audio tools.
“Mathematics is a challenge because if you go into Blackboard, there is not an easy way to exchange mathematics.” Mitchell said. “With Wimba, we can actually write on the whiteboard. We can talk to each other about the problems we’re facing. It becomes more like a classroom where I can see them.”
Professors’ ability to archive the class sessions online is another advantage of the Wimba Classroom.
“My students have to ability to go in and view any of the classes afterward,” Laubach said.
Although they are communicating with Wimba to make some improvements, these professors strongly recommend Wimba Classroom to faculty and students.
Staci Standiford can be reached at standiford1@marshall.edu.
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