The University of Maryland’s (UMD) Office of Information Technology (OIT) promotes Wimba Classroom to all university faculty through Wimba training workshops and monthly brownbag discussion meetings. Students also use the power of Wimba Classroom to meet with their classmates in the newly-released Virtual Study Space, an online gathering place where they can work on group projects or conduct group meetings and research. Students can access the Virtual Study Space via the MyUM portal or via the ELMS home page (http://elms.umd.edu) under “My Organizations.” The support site for students using Wimba Classroom is www.otal.umd.edu/wimba/wimbastudents/index.html
Since UMD’s OIT installed the Wimba building block inside ELMS in 2007 and began its efforts to raise awareness about Wimba Classroom, more and more faculty members have begun to adopt this tool. Many faculty members feel that it is revolutionary.
For example, Dr. Helene Cohen has enthusiastically embraced the technology and uses it to build interactive learning communities in her classes. Dr. Cohen, a visiting assistant professor in the College of Education, uses Wimba Classroom to conduct online presentations and meetings with her EDHI students. Dr. Cohen testified about Wimba Classroom from the student’s perspective, “Students often approach the experience with scepticism and even anxiety. However, they are quickly won over by the easy, intuitive, user-friendly platform.” One big plus of Wimba Classroom is its ease of use, she says. One hour’s training will ensure effective use of this tool. A brief orientation from the instructor will also put the students at ease with Wimba Classroom. Faculty and students don’t need to install any software on their computers. The tool can be accessed right inside the ELMS course space.
Dr. Cohen continued to attest that “Wimba Classroom enhances learning outcomes in a virtual learning environment which has interactivity, flexibility, and high-level participation.” Her students describe the online classroom made possible by Wimba Classroom as “adventuresome, meaningful, and challenging.” They especially appreciate the comprehensive nature of the experience. “I do enjoy multi-tasking. Being able to communicate in so many different ways was fascinating.” “The chat function allowed us to have multiple collective conversations going on that we would not have been able to have in a traditional classroom.” Instead of the stiff, artificial conversations they had anticipated, students were rewarded with conversations that were surprisingly rich and meaningful. “We can listen and talk to each other, have the instructor’s immediate feedback, express emotions and share Web sites and desktop applications.” “I would argue that our classmates were even more engaged and ‘present’ than in our normal setting.”
Students enjoy speculating about “the impact and possibilities” inherent in the medium. They are especially intrigued by the option of bringing together remote users, “This is a perfect vehicle to provide a more immediate form of connection between stakeholders that cannot meet together physically.” Wimba Classroom also extends students’ personal reach, “I feel like I am a bigger part of the world now.”
According to Dr. Cohen, “In general, students experience the online classroom as ‘fun and dynamic,’ a ‘delightful change to traditional learning.’” One student said, “The experience has opened up other avenues for me to explore.”
University of Maryland
Wimba Increases Engagement at the University of Maryland
