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Virtual Classroom is Sending Traditional Classroom to History

Virtual Classroom – a Ticket for Modern Education

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Virtual classroom is one of those things that never seem to get old. There are shows from early ’90s talking about the possibility of kids learning things from their TV sets rather than going to school. Of course, back then, interactive software and live feed from cameras was the stuff of science fiction, let alone virtual classroom software or the process of modern learning in a completely controllable virtual learning environment. And yet, here we are, almost three decades later, talking about a virtual classroom becoming a reality.

What is a Virtual Classroom?

What really stuck to every kid’s mind when they first heard of such a thing was that they are never going to need to go to school again. And they could hardly wait. This is because, under this concept, they could stay at home or go to the park or whatever kids do and be able to attend lectures from a distance. The ability to learn things without books and pencils and all those bullies was quite appealing to most. It kind of still is, come to think of it. The teachers were probably excited as well about never having to get up early and being able to work from home – until they realized they might be replaced by computers or something like that.

Virtual Classroom - Concept of a Classroom with Computers

Basically, everything that students would normally do in a classroom can be done in front of a camera and controlled by their teacher, in theory. The interactive learning process is supposed to be much more efficient than regular schooling and at a fraction of the cost, since students would not need to be transported physically to their lectures, or buying books and other things. On the other hand, such a concept would be a true salvation to adults who cannot afford to go to university or college because of high tuition fees and because they have to work for a living. If you want to know more about this concept, look no further than Classroom 2020.

The Benefits

On one hand, we have the same old boring classroom on the other side of town. Where students have to get up early, get to school, and spend all day listening to lectures and avoiding all the bad things their peers may have in store for them. This is not a familiar environment so the stress levels are much higher – it’s a scientific fact. Then again, there are some pros as well – for one, students get to hang out, interact with one another and learn about the way the real world works.

Student studying Hard during Night

On the other hand, we have a safe, cozy virtual classroom, safe from any threats of a liberal society. Here, students have a lot more time at their disposal, and can divert all that energy they would normally spend commuting and wondering around the school grounds on more academic pursuits. Getting a real girlfriend might be tricky, and there is no way to actually enforce any authority or discipline over someone who is not even physically present in the same room. Then again, considering what most teachers have to deal with anyway, this would not be much of a difference in any case. However, all that extra technology is sure going to come in handy, as shown by numerous studies such as The Evolution of Technology in The Classroom.

How to Engage Students?

On one hand, virtual classroom would pose a slightly greater challenge for the teachers to enforce discipline, but this is more than offset by the ability to apply a personal approach to each and every of their students. Their analysis of lessons can be adapted and broken down into more manageable pieces, that students will be able to deal with. Besides, since there is a lot more in terms of connectivity, any serious and reoccurring issue can be addressed on a global scale and the solution passed on to other teachers in real time. Negative behavior is already contained by simply isolating the good students from the problematic ones. To find out more on how to engage students, read the post 5 Teaching Strategies to Engage Students Using Technology.

How Affordable is a Virtual Classroom?

When compared to traditional learning tools and materials, running a virtual classroom is a lot more expensive in the beginning because of all the software and hardware components that need to be acquired. Books and pencils are much cheaper, remember? Except they are also far more expendable while software and hardware can be used for years. Also, add other costs such as transportation, non-educational staff, conforming to all the government regulations and all the problems that might occur… And that is even without mentioning tuition… The costs of traditional education may seem low at first, but they keep piling up and they are literally limitless. By comparison, the only expenses of a virtual classroom are the software, teachers and the electricity. These may vary from country to country and in some places may be impossible to implement (especially in third world countries) but developed nations have no excuse for avoiding this brilliant idea.

YouTestMe Classroom 2020 is a shining example on how a virtual classroom could look like. For more information check out Classroom 2020 product page.

 

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What Is a Virtual Learning Environment (VLE)?

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This is an entirely web-based learning platform, and it covers all aspects of the educational process. Of course, all of these aspects are digital. All of the participants are organized into virtual groups, and they have to share their resources and interact with one another. Just like in a normal classroom, except there is not a single physical location they have to be present.

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Knowledge Management - Modern Testing

Knowledge Management – Traditional vs. Modern Testing

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As knowledge management becomes one of the key areas for future development, experts still debate the merits of traditional testing and compare it to the computer-based one. Whether it comes to making adjustments to the Learning Management System (LMS), or testing solutions regarding Virtual Learning Environments (VLE), some people still prefer the old ways over the new. This position is understandable, but it is also important to take an objective view of the current situation and make plans for the future.

What kind of testing is the most dominant nowadays?

It goes without saying that the traditional, paper-based approach is by far more users across the board. Due to its low cost, ubiquitous status, and the fact that it has been proven in action time and time again, a lot of people prefer it over the uncertain, costly alternative that is CBT. However, times are changing, and those that fail to keep up will be left behind. With that in mind, CBT has been gaining in popularity as a knowledge management tool, especially over the last decade. The sheer amount of research on this topic has been growing at an exponential rate, but conclusions are still… inconclusive.

The thing is, technology is developing at such a rapid pace that studies and their findings cease to be relevant in a matter of years, so a lot of the initial studies have been rendered inconsequential a long time ago. Besides, the computer experience an average candidate has nowadays is vastly different from what it would have been a decade ago, or what it will be a decade from now. However, if there is a general consensus on this issue, at least when it comes to studies conducted within the last three years or so, it would be that there is no major difference between CBT and PBT, as the difference is smaller than 0.05%. Of course, this may change in the future.

Knowledge management today – use of modern technologies

As technology advances, so do the testing methods, even at lower education levels – not to mention companies. For one, computers and tablets have been present in most schools for years, in some form or another. The increased level of interaction between students and teachers has also resulted in additional testing methods, that are done via computers and other devices. At the university level, many institutions resort to OpenCourseWare (OCW), Google Classroom, or similar solutions for knowledge management problems.

As for companies and solutions aimed primarily at adults, we can see an ever-increasing use of social networks for educational purposes. The potential to adopt knowledge from one’s peers as well as its success rate has not gone unnoticed. Webcams, whiteboards, and screencasting have all found their uses in this area as well.

Paper-based vs. computer-based testing

Each of them has certain benefits over the other. For instance, the cost of paper-based testing is essentially boiled down to a sheet of paper and the person in charge of monitoring the exam, whereas computer-based testing requires electricity, computers, and other means that make the initial costs much higher. On the other hand, it is a lot easier to implement en masse and is arguably much safer in terms of administration. Then again, it all depends on the level of measures implemented against cheating and the level of commitment on behalf of those being examined.

In the long run, however, CBT does involve a number of advantages. For one, exams do not need to be shipped to a physical location, so there should be no delays or associated costs. Simple encryption should keep away most troublemakers. Most importantly, scoring is a lot faster in this regard, as everything is done electronically. The probability of human error is much lower as well. One downside is that this only applies to certain types of tests, so scoring essays in this manner is still far too good to be true. PBT will most likely remain in use, at least on some level – until CBT technology has advanced enough to take over entirely.

CBT in practice

Before introducing a virtual learning environment, many institutions specializing in education such as Cambridge were beyond reach to the overwhelming majority of people. After all, you can only fit so many people inside a classroom at one time. However, after making the switch to include advanced technologies complete with CBT, the overall level of education has increased dramatically. This is a life-changing opportunity for people who could not afford to study at a prestigious university due to lack of funds or because they have to support their families. In the future, however, most universities will offer their services online in one form or another, while maintaining the regular, physical lessons to those who can afford them.

From language teaching to gaining new skills, various companies all around the world have resorted to this kind of knowledge management for their employees, especially in the IT sector. The ability to create a universal test, translate it into a number of languages, and conduct it simultaneously in several different countries has not gone unnoticed by major companies. There are even companies that specialize in conducting computer-based testing and offering their services to schools and businesses alike.

YouTestMe Software Solutions

YouTestMe recognized the potential of improving modern ways of testing and developed two knowledge testing platforms that are very competitive in today’s e-learning market. The first solution is Classroom 2020, a Virtual Learning Environment (VLE) that offers a wide set of features bound to improve the quality of lecturing and testing. It was designed for schools, colleges public, and government institutions.  The second solution, Get Certified, a quiz maker and certification platform, answers to the constant requirement of employee training and certification. But those are only a few features that our products have. Feel free to sign up for free demos of Classroom 2020 and Get Certified to see for yourself all of the advantages of modern knowledge testing solutions.