AVer Europe and Shure support LSE Cities research centre in a successful transition to hybrid learning

AVer Europe, the leading provider of educational technology and Pro AV solutions, together with Shure partner M&R Communications, has supported the LSE Cities research centre, part of the London School of Economics and Political Science, in a successful transition to a hybrid teaching model. To facilitate this, AVer Europe and M&R Communications provided LSE Cities with a portable, powerful and fully scalable system providing a best-in-class audio and video experience.

 LSE Cities runs the Executive MSc in Cities, an 18-month modular programme for senior urban professionals who want to better understand and deliver change in cities. The travel disruption arising from the COVID-19 pandemic presented a considerable challenge as it prevented almost all students attending the programme’s five-week teaching modules.

 However, this challenge also brought an opportunity to transition the Executive MSc in Cities to a blended hybrid teaching format. The resulting ‘hybrid-flex’ teaching model allows students to attend teaching modules in-person or remotely, thereby reducing travel commitments and making the programme more accessible. Traditional lectures have been largely replaced with innovative blended learning materials, and teaching modules reworked to emphasise classroom discussion and peer-to-peer information exchange.

 The project needed to be completed quickly to keep teaching and learning disruption to a minimum, with an added challenge to the project created by a global components shortage caused by the pandemic.

 Rene Buhay, SVP of Sales and Marketing at AVer Europe comments, “It is a pleasure for AVer to work with the LSE Cities programme, part of the London School of Economics and Political Science, a global leader in education. The cutting-edge camera technology provided by AVer ensures that the LSE Cities programme team can provide world–renowned, cutting-edge educational material in a hybrid setting, providing flexibility of location while preserving the quality and intimacy of an in-classroom discussion.”

 “For me, the biggest accomplishment is that the technology largely goes unnoticed by the faculty and students,” said Jim Osbourne, Executive MSc Manager, LSE Cities. “Everyone can see and hear each other perfectly, so discussion is clear and natural.”

 The AVer PTZ link software is the bridge that connects the immersive videoconferencing experience and technology of global solutions provider AVer with the Shure Microflex® Complete Wireless (MXCW) Digital Conference System. This creates a seamless voice tracking solution which enables all participants, whether in the classroom or remote, to communicate and collaborate effectively in a variety of settings. The LSE Cities Research Centre is utilising the AVer PTC310U camera for the majority of hybrid spaces and the PTC500S for larger spaces.