Is it a bird? A plane? It's a Meeting Owl! Hybrid classes accommodate students with the help of new technology

BY AJ WERNER Reporter

While some students might be hesitant to return to in-person classes, Pierce College now is offering a new online accommodation.

The Meeting Owl is a camera that follows the teacher around the classroom so that students who are attending class via Zoom can still see and hear their professor at all times, along with students in the room.

The high-tech camera isn’t available in every hybrid class, but cinema professor Ken Windrum already had some experience teaching with the Owl.

Windrum, who has been teaching since 1998, said that the Owl has been a great addition to his lectures.

“If you have a live class, you don’t want to be sitting just looking into your monitor,” Windrum said.

“You want to be able to walk around. You want to be able to look at the students.”

The Owl has a simple design and works discreetly. It’s voice-activated so as long as the professor is talking, the camera will know to follow.

Windrum explained that the camera allows for more flexibility during his Zoom meetings.

“It seems to be a great solution so that students can choose to be in the room or to be on Zoom, and you can accommodate both,”

Collins-Smith has been at his side to make sure things go smoothly.

Collins-Smith has had hands-on experience with the Owl, he’s gotten to see how it all works and has some high praise for the high-tech camera.

“It makes it a super efficient way to teach people who are in the classroom and people who are not in the classroom simultaneously,” Collins-Smith said.

“It’s not difficult to operate,” Collins-Smith said. “As long as you train with it and learn how to use it properly, it’s fine, it’s perfectly simple to use.” if they had to move or do something different, because they could do it remotely, they were so happy.” Hayes recommends that this gadget be used in more classes around Pierce.

There are only two Owl cameras currently being used on campus.

Professor Erin Hayes, who has also been using the camera for her lectures, said that the flexibility has already proven to be valuable.

“I think it works very well for lecture classes,” Hayes said. “It’s important for our students and that’s what we should be doing. We as teachers should be adapting ourselves to the needs of our students.”

Windrum said. Professor Windrum has used this device for only a handful of meetings. So while he’s still learning exactly how to operate the device, Sean

With any new piece of technology, there can be a learning curve.

But with some due diligence and playing around, Collins-Smith found the classroom tool to be fairly easy to operate.