A Virtual Open Evening

We did it! We ran a virtual open evening for the MAPP yesterday and it seemed to go ok...

The session was conducted within Blackboard (Bb) Collaborate and lasted about an hour. We had a total of 9 people take part in the session, of whom only about 3 or 4 were prospective students. However, the session ran smoothly and we now have a recording that can be used for any subsequent enquirers this year if needed. A link to the Bb Collaborate recording is here. [The Bb Collaborate recording should also be available to view within my PGCert Bb organisation.]

The feedback from those taking part was overwhelmingly positive and the prospective students were clearly very grateful that such a session had been provided. One of the prospective students, looking to study the MAPP via distance learning, was logging in from Qatar so this was enough of a validation for me that virtual sessions such as this are needed if we want to truly open up to a global audience and making our learning provision available to those unable to travel to the University campus.

Alongside the more 'official' session on Bb Collaborate, I also broadcast part of the session via Periscope. Until the power on my phone went :-) This had 67 'live' viewers (I was aiming for at least 10 live viewers). Of course, these viewers will not be people who are likely to be interested in the MAPP as they will be Periscope users simply browsing for live broadcasts, of which there are still relatively few as the number of Periscope users builds. Still, it was a useful 'test of concept' and a way of exploring what might be possible using the Periscope app. For example, it does allows quick and easy filming and distributing of material that could be instructional for students or for raising awareness of a course (or both).

A 'mock' virtual open evening

Today we ran a 'mock' session for a virtual open evening ahead of next week's PG Open Evening. We had about seven or eight people log on to a Blackboard (Bb) Collaborate session (including our PG Marketing Manager!) and all seemed to go well! The PGMM was impressed and I think we have turned her around to the idea now :-)

Lots of support from our Open4Learning team, and a commitment from them to support the real session next week. Looking forward to it. I'm wondering if there would be a way of obtaining some feedback from those who take part. I'm sure that should be fairly easy.... for example, in the session I could seek some basic feedback. And then a follow-up email? Or perhaps something on SurveyMonkey?

Alongside the more 'formal' Bb Collaborate session, we even had a play with Periscope, an app from Twitter that allows live 'broadcasting' over the web. As I read a little more about Periscope (e.g., there is an official blog here), I discover how new the app is. It was only launched in March of this year! It was fun to play with, and I think we will try to do something as part of the PG Open Evening. I haven't figured out a way to 'post' recordings from Periscope on here, but if you dowload the app and follow @BucksMAPP you can view live or recorded broadcasts (recordings are only available for a short time after). While you're at it, you can also follow @BucksMAPP on Twitter!

Up Periscope!

I have recently been introduced to Periscope, an app that I think is owned by Twitter, and 'allows you to see the world through another's eyes'. It is effectively a video version of Twitter in that it allows the user to 'broadcast' live to followers over the web. I like it and I'm beginning to have a play with it, wondering how it might be used in a learning context. I have set up a @BucksMAPP account (to represent the MSc Applied Positive Psychology) as well as a personal account (@dr_matthewsmith). Both easy as they are Twitter accounts and you can log on using Twitter.

One of my first thoughts, as we think about running a 'virtual' open evening session, is whether we could be broadcasting via Periscope at the same time? Worth thinking about?

Thinking more long-term, Periscope may be another tool to help build and support community among learners? For example, research has shown that 'social presence' (characterised as 'being together' with learners) can be influenced positively through online communication that is expressive, emotional, immediate and stimulating (Tu & McIsaac, 2002). Real-time informal broadcasts via Periscope, that do allow two-way interaction as viewers can type in comments an questions that appear on the broadcast, could meet such criteria.

Reference
Tu, C., & McIsaac, M. (2002). The relationship of social presence and interaction in online classes. American Journal of Distance Education, 16, 131-150.