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Philadelphia ASTD E-Learning SIG Web Conference: March, 2007

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Creating Effective Web Conferences

Thank you for joining us!

Slides and notes from this session will be posted on the blog next week:http://phlesig.wordpress.com

Agenda

1. What is a web conference, and when, why, and how should you use one?

2. What web conferencing tools are available?

3. What do you need to know about visual design for web conferences?

4. How do you add interactivity and engage your participants?

5. Question & Answer session



What is a Web Conference and When, Why and How Should You Use One?

Bobbe BaggioPresident, Advantage Learning Technologies

Can be instructor led and one way like a WebcastCan be recorded and replayed laterCan be designed to be interactiveUsually live, synchronous, starting time and ending time

What is a Web Conference?



Deliver a great deal of content quicklyConvenientWorld class expertLarge class size if broad castSmall class size 10 to 25 at the most if interactiveMimic classroom environmentDemonstrationsCover a single topicReplay

When Should You Use One?

Can be produced at a fraction of the cost of F-2-FCan be archived and replayedLet’s learners isolate and remediateSubject has a short life spanTraining needed quickly

Why Should You Use One?



Large class size if broadcastSmall class size 10 to 25 at the most if interactiveSelect the technologiesCreate materials that are cognitively friendlyCreate an environment that supports interactions and community

How Should You Use One?

How familiar are you with web conferencing?

A. I have hosted a web conference before

B. I have participated in a web conference before

C. I have both hosted and participated in a web conference before

D. This is my first experience with a web conference



Send them to the moderators by clicking the drop down arrow in the chat area…and typing in your questions….just the moderators…

We will compile a list for later in the program!!! ☺

What questions do you really want to ask about web conferences but don’t want to feel stupid by asking?

Web Conferencing Tools

Nathan EckelInstructional Designer, MSIT



Audience Poll

Are you interested in Web Conferencing for a:

A. Mid-to-large size Company or School?B. Small Business?C. Freelance Individual or Consultant?

Institutional PackagesTools for corporations and universitiesVirtual Classes, Web Seminars, eMeetingsMore robust help and supportHigher price, less price flexibilityMany have “Basic & Professional” versionsFairly uniform in function & price



1. Elluminate2. Live Meeting3. Centra4. Connect (Adobe)5. WebEx6. Wimba

Conferencing Tools - Institutional

ElluminateConvenient and Simple to Use

Pricing:Academic - $180 / month for 5 seatsCommercial - contact for info VRoom - 3 seats for free



Live Meeting by Microsoft

Standard & Pro EditionsMS integration & interface is familiarMany user restrictions in contract

Pricing:Pay a premium for Microsoft convenience5 users for $375/month$0.35 per person per minute

Centra by SabaPerhaps the “standard” applicationExtensive Usability, Support, Customizability

Pricing available via webform



Connect by Adobe (Breeze)

Hosts 15 to 2,500 people

Pricing:$375 per month for 5 users $.32 per minute per person

Basic version a reasonable $39 per month

Wimba by Horizon

Simple for institution-wide deployment Customizable, many features & benefitsPlug & Play, easy LMS integration

No Pricing on website



WebEx - Just purchased by Cisco

Flexible Plans and Pricing

Options Include:$39/month for Individual AccountCorporate: $375/month for 5 hosts $0.33 / minute / user

Out of the Box ConferencingWhile the previous tools offered variables of the same theme, these next tools are “Out of the Box”, flexible, and differentIdeal for many individuals & consultants



Conferencing Tools - Out of Box

1. Glance2. Yugma3. GoToMeeting4. Connect (Interwise)

Glance

Unique "Desktop Sharing" program for Live demos, Presentations, & App. SharingEveryone sees what is on your desktop Host subscribes, up to 15 free guests

Pricing:$120 /month, or $50 /month for individual



Yugma

Closest to “Open Source”Many of standard software featuresMaximum 50 attendees

Pricing:FREE or $10 per month

GoToMeeting by Citrix

The most time for the least $$$Unlimited online meetings up to 10 users

Pricing:$50 /month



Connect (Interwise)

Similar to GoToMeetingUnlimited Voice, Web, Video conferencingDesigned for mid-to-large enterprises Webcast Capabilities

Website infers ½ cost of normal conferencing

Resources

The “definitive” list of dozens of tools:http://thinkofit.com/webconf/realtime.htm#general



Visual Design for Your Web Conference

Noelle ArchambeauPrincipal, Archambeau & Associates

PowerPoint Templates

Use light backgrounds with dark textLimit background graphicsUse basic layouts with room for your contentFormat your Master slide for consistency



Which Template is Best?A. B.

C. D.

Slide Titles

Enter titles in the "Click to add title" fieldGive each slide a unique titleAvoid special characters



Slide Text

Use sans serif fonts like Arial and TahomaUse 32-44 point font for titles Use 20-32 point font for body textView your slides at 75% as you developEnsure all content is on the slide Always run a spelling and grammar check

Content

Leave lots of white spaceUse the "six-by-six" ruleBullets should be highlights, not contentUse questions and exercises to engage



What is Not Converted?

Typically these items are not converted:Slide transitionsSlide animations (e.g. bullets flying in)Embedded sounds and videosLinks to URLs and external documents

Adding Interactivity and Engaging Your Participants

Bobbe BaggioPresident, Advantage Learning Technologies



Prior Knowledge

Context

Expectations

How Do People Learn?

A. What is a Web Conference and When, Why and How Should You Use One?

B. The Webinar On Webinars

Catchy titles help with higher expectations

Which title do you like better?



The context of an event, word, paradigm, change or other realityincludes the circumstances and conditions which surround it (Wikipedia)

The set of circumstances or facts that surround a particular event, situation, etc. (dictionary.com)

Context

Context = Relevance

One of the most important elements

It creates the hooks

Simple is always better



A. How you feel about the topic

B. How the topic is presented

C. Your perceived importance of the topic

D. Your motivation to learn it

Which do you think is more important in learning?

”Can be defined as those functions and/or operations made available to the learner to enable them to work with content material presented in a computer based environment.”(Sims, 2000)

Interactivity



1. Learners – who

2. Content – what

3. Pedagogy – how

4. Context – when, where

Sims, R. (2000). An interactive conundrum: Constructs of interactivity and learning theory. Australian Journal of Educational Technology, (16), 45-57. Retrieved May 17, 2005, from http://www.ascilite.org.au/ajet/ajet16/sims.html

Four Dimensions of Interactions

Roles

Encounters

Presence

Teacher ____________________________ Learner

Social Presence



Have you had an unpleasant experience in an online encounter?

A. I received a nasty emailB. I was insulted in a a group conversation

by a bullyC. I was ignored and overlooked in a group

conversationD. I was embarrassed and felt like I did not

belong

An online conversation that is going on while another or main conversation or presentation is taking place.

Criticized for distraction and praised for providing a valuable learning environment.

Back Channel



cognitive

social instructional

Community of Inquiry

Educational Experience

Online Presence

Fostered by social software applications

Support communication, collaboration

Knowledge construction

Virtual Communities



Which is the most important for learning?

A. Eliminate stress, threat, anxiety, and learner helplessness

B. Eliciting a positive state by engaging positive emotions

C. Empowering your audience by asking questions

D. Having a good time and a plan that works

Learning

Formal

Organized



Comfortable with the online environment

Technically literate– share documents– participate in exercises

Degree of user comfort more important than sophisticated system

Challenges

Provide participants with clear guidelinesCircumvent technical difficultiesBe tolerant of the learning curveLook out for firewallsUse a conversational toneRelax

When Planning a Web Conference



Q&A Session

Our Next Meeting…

Thursday, April 19th 6:00 - 8:00 pmPenn State Great ValleyClaire Borger from Imagination AlleyVisual Design for Learning

creating effective web conferences · slide text use sans serif fonts like arial and tahoma use...

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