Microsoft Remote and Hybrid Learning

Is remote learning the next frontier for academia?

The year 2020 might have left the world in a daze but we are all in this together. There was no sector that escaped the uncertainty brought about by a pandemic that pulled the carpet right off under our feet. Academia was one of the sectors that were grossly affected, with learning institutions shutting down to curb the spread of the virus. While remote learning was not a new thing, Covid-19 fast-forwarded the demand for remote learning.

Microsoft is one of the global organisations that promptly stepped up to partner with schools and universities worldwide to enable Remote and Hybrid learning solutions.

One of the support that Microsoft has provided is the use of free Office 365 with Teams to enable Remote and Hybrid work and learning. In addition, Microsoft lent technical support to the UNESCO COVID-19 Emergency Task Force, as well as donated $1 million to Puget Sound’s COVID-19 Response Fund. The Microsoft Remote and Hybrid Learning Community brings together education users from across the world to confront Remote and Hybrid learning challenges together, with the support of Microsoft specialists.

The increased need and use of Remote and Hybrid learning by learning institutions has also led to evolving needs. The main questions coming from the learning institutions are around the topics of enabling inclusive Remote and Hybrid learning, empowering instructors and IT staff, and fostering ongoing engagement. Schools are trying to determine how to set up online learning that integrates with existing solutions and includes students of all abilities and backgrounds. Then they need to ramp up instructors and staff on new technologies quickly, all while maintaining communication rhythms with their constituencies and fostering a Remote and Hybrid sense of school community.

Microsoft is listening and acting fast by meeting the learning institutions at whatever level they are at in their Remote and Hybrid learning journeys. Microsoft supports the schools and universities to achieve sustainable, systematic Remote, and Hybrid learning at scale, while recognizing the unique needs of specific learning communities. We are providing thousands of education users with the no-cost solutions they need right now, helping to enable inclusive Remote and Hybrid learning, empower instructors and IT staff, and foster ongoing engagement, all on a foundation of security, compliance, and compatibility

While there are countless ways Microsoft solutions can help enable inclusive Remote and Hybrid learning at your institution, here are just a few examples. You can run a class session in Teams from your existing Learning Management Systems (LMS)—like Canvas, Blackboard, Moodle, and others. You can rely on robust built-in accessibility tools in Office 365, including Immersive Reader, voice-to-text, screen reader compatibility, and more. And you can post assignments, give quizzes, and stream and upload lectures all within the central hub of Teams.

There are also lots of ways to ease the transition for instructors and IT staff. In addition to a plethora of free online training and resources, Microsoft offers Windows Virtual Desktops, a service that can be used to give faculty all the resources they need even off-campus. Azure Lab Services can create virtual machines for teaching, training, labs, and more, and you can generate class teams automatically from Student Information System data

Teams offers live event capability, allowing you to foster community even when your constituencies are spread across the nation or even the world. Teams live events support up to 10,000 users and could be used for scenarios like leadership addresses, larger instruction sessions, university or district updates, commencement, and more. You can even include live captions for these events. And you can encourage hands-on learning through free programs and tools like Minecraft: Education Edition, MakeCode, Flipgrid, and more—including online resources to empower parents.

You do not have to replace your current investments. Microsoft solutions build on the technologies you already have in place, and they ease management by centralizing your learning in one location. You can open Zoom meetings in Teams, and you can open Teams meetings from your learning management system, whether you’re using Canvas, Blackboard, Moodle, or others. In addition, Microsoft solutions work across a range of devices, including Mac, iPhone, Android, and Chromebook.

Anthony M. Nyutu is a Modern Workplace Solution Specialist with Microsoft Corporation covering Africa Emerging Markets