Image courtesy of Michael Dziedzic on Unsplash
Anyone working with content development and technology knows the common phrase ‘content is king’. You need to have excellent ‘content’ because if things just look pretty, there is little real value to the reader. Online learning reframes this dilemma. Now it is not just the content which matters, but the ability to communicate it using digital platforms that make the teaching experience effective.
The global education sector is currently undergoing rapid disruption, from kindergarten right through to higher education. The content is still the same, but it now needs to be communicated differently to make the most of the digital environment. Businesses have already experienced this shift online, but are still realising the way you tell your story needs to change; the story is the same, it just needs to adapt and be flexible. But flexible for what digital technology? There are literally thousands of software services and platforms to choose from, so knowing how to integrate all the different digital tools is an art and a skill within itself.
This digital delivery method is even more difficult with activities that are not naturally suited to an online teaching environment. Specialist areas such as skills-based learning in music and other creative arts need to have the right equipment and ‘feel’ to provide the best learning environment. The current and various COVID-19 restrictions in place on social distancing, wearing masks and lockdown quarantine makes the ability to teach these skills-based courses even harder. How can they be reimagined for online delivery, but in a way that makes it easy to communicate without having to be an IT wizard?
Kadenze Virtual Studio (KVS) has answered that question for studio teachers, arts educators and teaching artists everywhere. Kadenze Virtual Studio creates an online education environment specifically for independent artists and arts educators of all types. Additionally, a Kadenze Virtual Studio is backed by technology that enables online teaching and learning to focus on the message: the skills being developed and the accompanying content.
A Kadenze Virtual Studio gives teachers their own platform, to teach their own content, the way they choose. This streamlines planning, designing, delivering and managing classes and content all through the one centralised technology.
For learners, the Kadenze Virtual Studio presents a focused and easy-to-use learning environment with opportunities to interact, share and gain feedback in an arts-focussed platform. Instructors and students alike relish the flexibility of using forums and galleries for peer-review, building portfolios of achievements, communicating instantly through messenger and awarding badges for making learning visible. All parties have the ability to share visual content from YouTube and Vimeo and easily embed a Zoom meeting or Google Meet.
Kadenze is not new to arts-based education, being the platform of choice for leading arts institutions worldwide. The breakthrough development with the launch of the Kadenze Virtual Studio this week is that our designers, educators, artists and engineers are offering a pure white-label teaching solution for the independent teacher and artist. In a KVS arts studio, teachers are in control; in control of a full suite of mature teaching tools, of the content presented and of the financial arrangements between instructors and learners.
The move to teaching online is daunting for many, so we also provide support guides for setting up and running a Kadenze Virtual Studio and teaching creative content. Our Technology Enabled Creative Learning (TECL) framework helps artists and teachers to plan, develop and deliver content that makes the most of the online environment, keeping focus on the content and the learner’s progress.
Content will always be king, but using the right medium ensures the message is communicated clearly. Every educational institution is currently innovating to select software, platforms and technical support for the online teaching environment. For the independent educator-artist that solution is the Kadenze Virtual Studio (KVS).
Are you, or colleagues you know, considering launching online classes? You can do so in your own Kadenze Virtual Studio. For more information and to lodge an Expression of Interest please go to try.kadenze.com/virtualstudio to get started.