Facilities
Giving attention in advance to the facilities requirements will pay dividends in terms of successful and enjoyable videoconferencing experiences. These same items should be considered on different scales for both desktop and room-size systems.
Space - Space should suit the maximum size of groups you wish to accommodate in the types of activities you envision in your plan. See comments below for discussion of locations suiting the application.
Cabling - The facility should allow for cabling to the computer, monitors and other equipment to be strung away from foot traffic. A wiring closet where all the wiring terminates is desirable.
Sound - Noise suppression need not be at the studio level, but the ability to close out hallway noise or loud street sounds is necessary. Chair legs should be padded or the floor covered to avoid scraping sounds. The door hinges should be oiled and the door frame should be padded with common foam weather stripping for quiet closing.
Lighting - Both natural light or electrical light sources should be controllable to avoid glare on video screens. Some indirect light is desirable in most videoconferences. The room need not be dark.
Background - The scene behind the heads and torsos of participants should be plain, and devoid of pictures or other designs which are "busy" and likely to present a poor outline of the participants. A pastel or gray color works well.
Furniture - Furniture that complements the types of activities envisioned for the system is desirable. That is, for classes, use desks or tables; for meetings, use a large conference table.
Security - Not only should a facility be lockable for theft protection, but also secure from sudden entry during a conference by an unexpected visitor unaware of the conference. Signs like "Videoconference in Session" for the door(s) are important.
Electrical Power - Sufficient grounded outlets matching the equipment requirements should be available. Fused surge protection devices will protect the investment in equipment.
Other outlets - A telephone on a separate line from the video system should be installed for calling other sites before or during a videoconference as needed to coordinate. A fax machine and line are useful, especially if conducting classes.
Backup - a backup computer and monitor are good insurance for a heavily used facility.
Anne McGlone Teacher on Special Assignment, Kent, WA and Diana Eggers Teacher, Kent, WA.
Comments on facilities from experience:
McGlone, Teacher on the appropriate location of videoconference equipment: "One thing that's very important to consider, which sometimes people overlook is actually the location of the equipment. In Where in Washington the equipment was inside a school, inside a computer lab, so that gave students access to the equipment as well as other resources like the computers. If the equipment can be placed someplace where the students have access to it throughout the day, it makes it a lot easier in scheduling. If it is in a boardroom or a room that is used often for meetings and is already taken up with other things, then it's not likely that students will have that much chance to actually use the equipment. It's really helpful if it is inside a school or near a location where they can get to other resources that enhance their videoconferencing experience."
Eggers, Teacher also discusses suitable location of a system: "Let the teachers have it! That's my one piece of advice. I know that many schools or districts have put it in a small district basement room that isn't large enough for a classroom. Many districts have put it in boardrooms, and it looks really nice and it's a great place to have a videoconferencing, but other meetings are scheduled there and it displaces the videoconferencing system and that's not good. But truly, I think the biggest message is to let teachers use it with students.
"You definitely don't want to put it in a room where there are meetings scheduled on a regular basis. It would be ideal if there was as empty room that you could use strictly for videoconferencing that would hold a full class of kids. If you put it in a computer lab, every time you did a videoconferencing project, you would have to displace the kids that were going to be using the computer. If you're going to put it in a district site, in a boardroom, every time that boardroom is scheduled for another meeting, you cannot have a meeting through videoconferencing, and usually the board meetings take precedent over videoconference meetings. So I think that's a huge consideration. If you did decide to put it in a district office, any time the kids are going to use it you will need to bus them over to the district office, which isn't always the ideal situation. However, I know that choosing one school over another can be a difficult decision too."
"It maybe is not a goal to get it into every classroom, but to get it in the schools and in a location that is ideal for videoconferencing. Our junior high school, I believe, has the most ideal arrangement. Their library has 2 parts separated by a curtain, one of those heavy door things that you can pull shut. If the library was to be used for another project, and another class was in the library at the same time a videoconference was going on, it would be ok, because you could pull shut that door. Also, if you are involved with a videoconference, it's really nice to have the resources of the library behind you, so you can go and pull books off of the shelf and and access computers and the Internet."
Eggers, Teacher concerning audio facilities: "I think that lack of good audio is a common issue. Usually, the microphone is right on the desktop computer, while the microphones on group systems have wires that can get further out. You want to make sure that the kids who are talking are positioned within 2 to 3 feet of the microphone. If you're in a multi-point conference, where there are several sites, you definitely want to have the other sites mute their microphones. Otherwise, there is a fight, so to speak, for the audio frequency, and if someone at a site is ruffling papers or that sort of thing, they may pick up the video feed just based on their audio, because we do work on a voice activated system."
McGlone, Teacher concerning scheduling equipment, transportation and time: "We are very fortunate here that the legislature has implemented the K-20 network, so for Washington schools connecting with other Washington schools, there isn't a cost. However, even though each district does have the equipment, one set of equipment per district isn't easily accessible. Often times the students have to travel to use the equipment so we have had to arrange buses and transportation."
"When we work with people outside of our time zone, we need to find a time when we can actually work with them while they're still in the school, or still in the classroom with their students. We expanded our Where in Washington project to Where in the United States and had older students, 8th grade students actually, participating with other classrooms throughout the United States doing the same type of project."