La Salle Campus Barcelona’s Smart Learning Model Delivers Personalized Education With Zoom Rooms

La Salle-Ramon Llull University in Barcelona reacted quickly to move classes online at the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic. As the months went on and the situation remained uncertain, school leaders saw an opportunity to bring greater flexibility to education through a hybrid learning model La Salle calls Smart Learning.

During the summer of 2020, La Salle deployed Zoom Rooms in more than 60 classrooms on the Barcelona campus, creating smart classrooms for hybrid instruction. La Salle instructors use Zoom Meetings to weave Smart Learning into the educational experience.

La Salle’s Zoom Rooms-enabled classrooms allow students to personalize their education through in-person or remote learning. Check out the highlights below, or read our full case study for more detail.

A look at La Salle’s smart classrooms

La Salle’s Zoom Rooms classrooms are designed for ease of use and engagement with students in person and online. Smart classrooms have the following features:

• Multiple displays showing the active speaker (whether a professor or student is speaking), remote students, and an interactive digital whiteboard that gives professors and students the ability to co-annotate, save, and send content
• A sound system with microphones and speakers so students at home can clearly hear what’s going on in class and communicate with their peers and professor
• Cameras with auto-framing capabilities that track faculty members’ movements, allowing them to move around the room and lead more dynamic lessons

“We decided Zoom was the best option because of the easy, intuitive way to use the technology in the classroom,” said Josep Maria Ribes, director of academic affairs at La Salle. 

A flexible, personalized educational experience

Many of La Salle’s international students found themselves unable to travel back to campus for in-person learning for many months during the pandemic. Zoom provided a way for students to continue their education and connect with their classmates.

“Zoom has given us what we need to provide business continuity and enable student resilience,” Ribes said.

As more students return to campus, smart classrooms support a hybrid model that offers flexibility. “Students can decide what they prefer, and the experience is almost the same being here as being at home,” Ribes said.

“We have to understand the needs of our students and the new market. People are changing, and ways of learning are changing,” said Maria Pilar Torné, La Salle’s marketing and admissions director. “We’re working to understand this change and looking at offering programs that are on campus but give students the flexibility to learn off campus.”

Download the case study for more on La Salle’s smart classrooms and how the university uses Zoom to support learning, communication, and community connection.

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