Attend virtual classroom and meet Prof Einstein at Gitex

Telcom firm Etisalat had invited several companies to display their inventions at their stand, one which had an actual virtual classroom present.

Virtual classrooms, augmented reality and a robot professor - these were some of the advanced technologies that were being displayed at the ongoing Gitex Technology Week.
The technology week placed a heavy focus on how digital education can help enhance teaching and learning standards.
Telcom firm Etisalat had invited several companies to display their inventions at their stand, one which had an actual virtual classroom present.
Soren Ramussen from a Danish company, called Komas, said the invention can help students, living in any part of the world, be part of a class that may be in a different continent. The company's display at the Gitex technology week had several iPads present, where visitors had the chance to be part of a class.
"I've been working as a teacher for many years and you have to learn that technology can help students learn even more," Ramussen told Khaleej Times. "Some of the teachers don't know that technology can be an advantage. They feel that students will learn more if they teach the old way. But you need all the internet and solutions and when you have that, the teachers can do some amazing changes to the class.
Ramussen said that their invention allows teachers to "take over" a student's IPad when their attention is required. "Some teachers think that they don't want to lose control over students, but they would still be in charge as they'll have control through the iPad. Distance is not the same anymore when it comes to virtual classrooms," he said.
Besides a virtual classroom, a robot professor, called Professor Einstein, was also on display by the Hanson Robotics firm. Professor Einstein is able to give human-like expressions and can help students with mathematics.
Jeanne Lim, the chief marketing officer at the firm, said: "Professor Einstein is a technology that can be used for home tutorials. He can help you with improving your math and science skills. The robot is still in its pre-launch phase.
Another innovative feature on display was an augmented reality set, where students can take virtual field trips.
If the augmented reality is implemented by schools, they can choose what kind of field trip they want to take their students - it can be on educational field trips, such as a historical location.
sarwat@khaleejtimes.com