University Distance Learning Brings Flexibility to State-wide Training
Conducting disaster preparedness meetings among 14 Pennsylvania universities no longer requires hours or even days of travel time for university administrators. Instead, the Pennsylvania State System of Higher Education (PASSHE) is using interactive collaboration software from Wimba to conduct some of its state-wide staff meetings and training sessions.
The Wimba Collaboration Suite that PASSHE is using offers an array of interactive software tools that allow users to meet online outside traditional meeting room settings and classrooms. Using Collaboration Suite tools, staff can interact online while viewing meeting content in a variety of formats, including slides and video, and can chat, send instant message exchanges, listen to audio comments added to content, use an online “white board,” share applications online, conduct polls, listen to podcasts, and more.
Wimba was recently adopted by all 14 universities in PASSHE, the largest education provider in Pennsylvania. The software has been used in classrooms throughout some of the organization’s member universities for some time, but its online collaborative abilities are now offering administrators a handy tool for reducing meeting travel time across the state.