How quality audio on campus solves today’s higher education challenges

Someday, we’ll stop saying “pre-pandemic and post-pandemic.” And that day seems to be coming sooner for higher education organizations. With classrooms and campuses getting busy, hybrid learning is back to being a nice to have vs. a requirement.  

However, teachers and students still rely on pandemic-era audio solutions during and after class to ensure that information is delivered, understood, and discussed. Here’s how quality audio helps solve today’s higher education challenges. 

Remote learning solutions contribute to how we teach and learn today 

First, let’s look at where students and teachers are now. Joe Way, HETMA Chair, notes, “We said we’d never ever go back to the way we were. And now we’re back to the way we were.” Remote learning is an option, not a necessity. However, the hybrid learning technology used during the pandemic still solves challenges now that teachers and students are back on campus. And clear audio is at the heart of that positive learning experience. 

Ensuring everyone in the room can hear clearly 

You must deliver clear sound to every seat in all small spaces, large classrooms, and lecture halls. Bose Professional has solutions engineered to make it easier for students and teachers to hear and understand in every room. Bose Professional EdgeMax in-ceiling premium loudspeakers feature proprietary PhaseGuide technology that fills the room with quality sound from the front row to the back of the classroom.  

EdgeMax loudspeakers are also easy on your budget since they can reduce the number of required units in each room compared to conventional dome-tweeter ceiling speakers. 

Instead of projecting audio downward, PhaseGuide technology sends sound waves across the room. This allows complete room coverage without the need to install additional ceiling speakers. Bose Professional EdgeMax loudspeakers are HETMA Approved and widely used across their members’ campuses. 

“Our EdgeMax speakers rocked our InfoComm booth with DJ Lisle.”

Joe Way, Chair, HETMA 

Supporting flexibility with quality audio on campus 

At some schools, streaming and transcribing all classes is mandatory. The ability to watch and review lectures gives students added flexibility. For example, a student who leaves campus for a job interview can watch the class on their mobile phone from anywhere or review it later in a dorm room.  

With streaming, students can choose to take all classes remotely too. Online learning supports established professionals who go back to school to pursue degrees while working full time since they can learn on their own schedules.  

How robust audio solves accessibility challenges 

Schools also have growing populations of students and teachers whose native language is not English. Streaming and transcription support accessibility for those who need to review materials after the live class ends. “You can’t do that without high-quality audio on both ends,” Way said.

Audio helps students learn where and how they want 

Also, students are taking learning beyond the classroom. They want to study with each other in different spaces. Libraries and group study rooms are back to being gathering areas where students can collaborate and discuss lectures and assignments. They also need to collaborate with remote students.  

That means more rooms must be video enabled. Videobars like the Bose Professional Videobar VB1 are ideal for helping students communicate bidirectionally in real time. The bar features six beam-steering microphones that make the conversation more natural by actively focusing on speakers, while exclusion zones filter out unwanted sound. The bar’s auto EQ function also helps deliver optimized audio to everyone. 

A 4K ultra-HD camera also brings a new level of clarity to the video that helps you record each speaker. The camera’s auto-framing feature helps remote team members see and understand the presenter by focusing on whoever is speaking. The Bose Professional Videobar VB1 is also HETMA Approved. 

Higher education organizations can leverage pandemic-era technology solutions to create a positive learning experience on campus.

Talk to us about how to leverage quality audio solutions from Bose Professional to solve today’s learning challenges. Contact AVI-SPL to get started.