In the new education environment, issues of digital equity have brought hybrid learning to the fore. Not all kids have robust digital access at home, leading many districts to conclude that at least some kids will have to be physically in school some of the time.

Teachers need new tools to be effective in this hybrid setting to drive participation and collaboration among students. They also need to ensure that every student can be seen and heard regardless of his or her learning location.

“With a few tools, educators don’t have to compromise on their usual teaching style and preferred instructional methods, even when they have students who are in the classroom and others who are remote,” says Madeleine Mortimore, education technology innovation manager at Logitech.

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How Video Collaboration Technology Creates Shared Classroom Experiences

Technology can help teachers bridge the gap between students learning online and those physically in school.

At Farragut High School in Tennessee’s Knox County, for example, Spanish teacher Allison Maldonado has been using the Logitech MeetUp videoconference camera to get all her students aligned in the new environment.

The device allows for multiple preset camera angles, enabling Maldonado to keep students engaged whether she is teaching from her desk, from the board or elsewhere in the room. “My students can see me wherever I am, and I am able to move around at my choosing,” she says.

By pairing the device with Microsoft Teams, she’s able to connect her students with outside speakers — from medical professionals to law enforcement officers and others — even in a hybrid setting. “I can share a link with them so they can meet us virtually, because I still want to be able to offer my students the knowledge and the wisdom these outside speakers bring to my classroom,” she says.

Having a conference camera that provides a wide-angle view can give educators in the classroom “free range of movement without having to worry about whether they have gone off-angle or out of sight for the students who are tuning in remotely,” Mortimore says.

The videoconference camera’s advanced functionality makes it easy to drive participation and collaboration. It’s one of a number of technologies that can serve this purpose in the hybrid environment.