WSU has teamed up with a virtual meeting and collaboration company called Elluminate that is available for use starting this semester. The program is being used as an alternative to video conferencing and to satisfy all aspects of student learning. Elluminate is integrated with the Angel learning management system. It allows teachers and students to communicate using microphones, chat messaging, sharing files or streaming videos. Students can also draw on a whiteboard and click buttons to raise their hands, ask questions or indicate that they’ve stepped away.

“The reason why I’m so passionate about Web conferencing is because it gives the student access to class material at any time,” said Kenn Daratha, assistant professor in the College of Nursing at WSU Spokane. “It really puts the responsibility of learning on the student.” Daratha said that Web-conferencing tools like Elluminate give students control of when and where they are going to attend class, allowing them to really engage in the material. These programs could especially help ill students from infecting others by attending classes online rather than in person. Had more students been able to access class materials online, epidemics like H1N1 could have been prevented from spreading, he said.

Video conferencing requires special software and pre-determined times for meetings. The time slots also tend to get filled up quickly. Elluminate runs through a Web site that simplifies the process and allows users to meet virtually whenever they want.

“People can be basically in a meeting together even if they are widely dispersed geographically if they’ve got decent internet access, a computer, a camera and a microphone,” said Charmaine Wellington, academic media training coordinator at Academic Media Services. “We’re setting up a system where faculty and staff can have what’s called a virtual meeting room, which is open 24/7, 365.” Cheryl Dhein, head of Instructional Technology at the WSU College of Veterinary Medicine, participated in preliminary testing of Elluminate in the fall. She anticipates that the program will be used most for guest lecturers, presentations from other universities or for Web-conferencing meetings around the world. “Elluminate is a very viable method to deliver and receive content,” she said in a press release.

A lot of Washington state’s higher education and community colleges are now using Elluminate for its interactive and collaborative features, Wellington said.

“This is obviously useful for administrative purposes, but ultimately it could be very cool for students, especially students who have to do a lot of group work,” she said. “I bet it’s hell to try to find a time in everybody’s schedule to get ready together.” For more information, visit Elluminate.com or webconf.wsu.edu.