Online tutorial support in open distance learning through audio-graphic SCMC: tutor impressions

The adoption of audio-graphic conferencing brings with it changes to the learning experience for tutors and students alike. These need to be researched to gain an insight into the learning experience of those teaching and being taught through the medium. One of the conferencing tools that has been utilised for much of the documented research on audio-graphic conferencing is the Lyceum software, used at the UK Open University since 2002 to provide tutorial support for higher level language learners. The use of the software has been reported at different stages, from the pilot projects since 1997 (Hauck & Haezewindt, 1999, Shield 2000, Kötter 2001, Hewer and Shield 2001), to reports of the mainstream use (Hampel 2003, Hampel & Hauck 2004). It seems logical that the next step should be to research into the tutors’ experiences of the audio-graphic tool, which is a key element in the CALL research agenda (Warschauer, 1997; Debski & Levy, 1999). As the Open University prepares to phase out the software and replace it with a Moodle-based open-content audio-graphic synchronous conferencing tool, the insight into teaching with such tools becomes more valuable to other language learning professionals and institutions. In this paper we will report on a study of data collected from 18 tutors after spending a year teaching a new beginners’ course online. We will examine their perceptions of the audio-graphic tool and challenge some of the results from the initial research into audio-graphic conferencing. Most tutors found the teaching experience very positive and liked using the tool; however some experienced technical problems and believe that these affect the learning experience. In addition we will report on the first and successful use of the environment for assessment purposes

A Cloud Platform-as-a-Service for Multimedia Conferencing Service Provisioning

Multimedia conferencing is the real-time exchange of multimedia content between multiple parties. It is the basis of a wide range of applications (e.g., multimedia multiplayer game). Cloud-based provisioning of the conferencing services on which these applications rely will bring benefits, such as easy service provisioning and elastic scalability. However, it remains a big challenge. This paper proposes a PaaS for conferencing service provisioning. The proposed PaaS is based on a business model from the state of the art. It relies on conferencing IaaSs that, instead of VMs, offer conferencing substrates (e.g., dial-in signaling, video mixer and audio mixer). The PaaS enables composition of new conferences from substrates on the fly. This has been prototyped in this paper and, in order to evaluate it, a conferencing IaaS is also implemented. Performance measurements are also made.Comment: 6 pages, 6 figures, IEEE ISCC 201

Using the Java Media Framework to build Adaptive Groupware Applications

Realtime audio and video conferencing has not yet been satisfactorily integrated into web-based groupware environments. Conferencing tools are at best only loosely linked to other parts of a shared working environment, and this is in part due to their implications for resource allocation and management. The Java Media Framework offers a promising means of redressing this situation. This paper describes an architecture for integrating the management of video and audio conferences into the resource allocation mechanism of an existing web-based groupware framework. The issue of adaptation is discussed and a means of initialising multimedia session parameters based on predicted QoS is described

Application-Level QoS: Improving video conferencing quality through sending the best packet next

In a traditional network stack, data from an application is transmitted in the order that it is received. An algorithm is proposed where information about the priority of packets and expiry times is used by the transport layer to reorder or discard packets at the time of transmission to optimise the use of available bandwidth. This can be used for video conferencing to prioritise important data. This scheme is implemented and compared to unmodified datagram congestion control protocol (DCCP). This algorithm is implemented as an interface to DCCP and tested using traffic modelled on video conferencing software. The results show improvement can be made to video conferencing during periods of congestion - substantially more audio packets arrive on time with the algorithm, which leads to higher quality video conferencing. In many cases video packet arrival rate also increases and adopting the algorithm gives improvements to video conferencing that are better than using unmodified queuing for DCCP. The algorithm proposed is implemented on the server only, so benefits can be obtained on the client without changes being required to the client

Facilitating support groups for siblings of children with neurodevelopmental disorders using audioconferencing: a longitudinal feasibility study

Background: Siblings of children with chronic illness and disabilities are at increased risk of negative psychological effects. Support groups enable them to access psycho-education and social support. Barriers to this can include the distance they have to travel to meet face-to-face. Audio-conferencing, whereby three or more people can connect by telephone in different locations, is an efficient means of groups meeting and warrants exploration in this healthcare context. This study explored the feasibility of audio-conferencing as a method of facilitating sibling support groups. Methods: A longitudinal design was adopted. Participants were six siblings (aged eight to thirteen years) and parents of children with complex neurodevelopmental disorders attending the Centre for Interventional Paediatric Psychopharmacology (CIPP). Four of the eight one-hour weekly sessions were held face-to-face and the other four using audio-conferencing. Pre- and post-intervention questionnaires and interviews were completed and three to six month follow-up interviews were carried out. The sessions were audio-recorded, transcribed and thematic analysis was undertaken. Results: Audio-conferencing as a form of telemedicine was acceptable to all six participants and was effective in facilitating sibling support groups. Audio-conferencing can overcome geographical barriers to children being able to receive group therapeutic healthcare interventions such as social support and psycho-education. Psychopathology ratings increased post-intervention in some participants. Siblings reported that communication between siblings and their family members increased and siblings’ social network widened. Conclusions: Audio-conferencing is an acceptable, feasible and effective method of facilitating sibling support groups. Siblings’ clear accounts of neuropsychiatric symptoms render them reliable informants. Systematic assessment of siblings’ needs and strengthened links between Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services, school counsellors and young carers groups are warranted

Desktop video conferencing

This guide aims to provide an introduction to Desktop Video Conferencing (DVC) and forms part of the ESCalate Busy Teacher Educator Guides. You may be familiar with video conferencing, where participants typically book a designated conference room and communicate with another group in a similar room on another site via a large screen display. Desktop video conferencing allows users to video conference from the comfort of their own office, workplace or home via a desktop / laptop Personal Computer. DVC provides live audio and visual communication in real time from a standard PC and allows one to one and multiple user conferences by participants in different physical locations. Some software features a a ‘whiteboard’ on the computer screen for information exchange and the option to show or share documents and websites between the participants

Facilitating support groups for siblings of children with neurodevelopmental disorders using audioconferencing: a longitudinal feasibility study

Background: Siblings of children with chronic illness and disabilities are at increased risk of negative psychological effects. Support groups enable them to access psycho-education and social support. Barriers to this can include the distance they have to travel to meet face-to-face. Audio-conferencing, whereby three or more people can connect by telephone in different locations, is an efficient means of groups meeting and warrants exploration in this healthcare context. This study explored the feasibility of audio-conferencing as a method of facilitating sibling support groups. Methods: A longitudinal design was adopted. Participants were six siblings (aged eight to thirteen years) and parents of children with complex neurodevelopmental disorders attending the Centre for Interventional Paediatric Psychopharmacology (CIPP). Four of the eight one-hour weekly sessions were held face-to-face and the other four using audio-conferencing. Pre- and post-intervention questionnaires and interviews were completed and three to six month follow-up interviews were carried out. The sessions were audio-recorded, transcribed and thematic analysis was undertaken. Results: Audio-conferencing as a form of telemedicine was acceptable to all six participants and was effective in facilitating sibling support groups. Audio-conferencing can overcome geographical barriers to children being able to receive group therapeutic healthcare interventions such as social support and psycho-education. Psychopathology ratings increased post-intervention in some participants. Siblings reported that communication between siblings and their family members increased and siblings’ social network widened. Conclusions: Audio-conferencing is an acceptable, feasible and effective method of facilitating sibling support groups. Siblings’ clear accounts of neuropsychiatric symptoms render them reliable informants. Systematic assessment of siblings’ needs and strengthened links between Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services, school counsellors and young carers groups are warranted

Video-Conferencing with Audio Software

An online conference is illustrated using the format of a TV talk show. The conference combined live audio discussion with visual images spontaneously selected by the moderator in the manner of a TV control-room director. A combination of inexpensive online collaborative tools was used for the event, based on the browser-based audio-conferencing software, iVocalize. The exercise illustrates how an impression of a fully featured online video-conference can be created without the need for complex video-conferencing software and high bandwidth

Learning networks and communication skills

The project work presented in this paper is funded by the Joint Information Systems Committee (JISC) January‐December 1999. Our task has been to identify effective communicative practices for different technologies, in relation to the contexts in which they occur, and to feed back information about such practices to the educational community in a context‐sensitive way. The technologies at issue are: video conferencing (one‐to‐one, one‐to‐many, many‐to‐many); text‐based communication (email, bulletin boards, conferencing,) and audio conferencing (telephone tutoring, shared workspace plus audio link). The teaching and learning sites that agreed to take part in this research project provide courses to a variety of learners ‐ undergraduate, postgraduate, professional, full‐ and part‐time — in a spread of subject disciplines. The breadth and range of learning environments represented should maximize the chances of teachers in further and higher education recognizing issues and circumstances that are similar to their own and provide a rich comparative framework. The lecturers from the various teaching sites are regarded as collaborators in this research, identifying their own issues and learning needs, and providing feedback to authenticate the interpretative process. This study approach bridges the practice‐theory gap. We have completed the field work and are midway through analysing and interpreting the data in collaboration with teachers and students involved in the study. This will lead to the production of a flexible resource for individual lecturing staff which can also underpin staff development courses in good practice within networked learning environments. Further details and progress updates can be gleaned from our project web site at http://www.gla.ac.uk/services/tls/ JISC/index.html

Spatially Realistic Audio in a Video Conference Based on User Head Orientation

In current video conferencing applications, the audio of the speech of a participant is captured without any indication of the spatial positioning or body orientation of the speaker in relation to a device camera used to capture the corresponding video. Therefore, the audio experience in video conferencing lacks spatial and directional richness. This disclosure describes techniques to enhance the spatial richness of the audio in a video conference based on a user’s head orientation. With user permission, head orientation is estimated using measurements from device sensors of earbuds or another device used by a video conference participant. Head orientation measurements for the participants are used to apply appropriate positional correction to the audio using a head-related transfer function (HRTF). Implementation of the techniques can improve the spatial accuracy of the audio feed within a video conference, thus making the conversations sound more realistic