Untrodden 10／2 Report Manuscript

• Nice to meet you.

• First, let me explain the overview of the project.

• In a nutshell, it is like a class that can be connected across time, which is a nice expression.

As background, there is a trade-off between synchronous and asynchronous classes.

• Synchronous classes

  • Face-to-face classes or Zoom, for example.
  • The advantage is that it allows interaction with the teacher and other students, but there are also disadvantages like those mentioned here.

• On the other hand, the advantage of asynchronous classes is that each individual can control the pace of the class.

• However, in synchronous classes, such communication cannot be done.

• There are two types of dialogues that occur in synchronous classes:

  • Teacher-student interaction
  • Student-student interaction

• We aim to reassess the synchronicity of these two and create an environment that leads to learning.

Teacher ⇄ Student

• This is a simple concept.
• It involves operations like pausing and rewinding, similar to when watching YouTube Live.
• By doing so, the advantage of asynchronous classes, which is the ability to control the pace of the class, can be achieved.
• If we interpret the process of receiving information from the teacher as simply receiving the class, we can align the speed of receiving and understanding.

Student ⇄ Student

• If we make teacher-student interaction asynchronous, we lose the synchronicity among students.

• Without student-to-student dialogue, it becomes just like watching a lecture video on YouTube.

• The value of synchronous classes lies in the communication among students.

• Student-to-student dialogue is conducted in a pseudo-synchronous manner.

  • The message from a student who is ahead in the timeline is seen by a student who is behind.
  • Since they are experiencing the same class video, we can say it is pseudo-synchronous.
  • For example, in this diagram, B’s message reaches A and C, and A connects with C.

• As for the usage environment, the class itself is intended to be listened to simultaneously, so it is possible to have synchronous dialogue by synchronizing the timing. This allows for a back-and-forth between synchronicity and pseudo-synchronicity.

• As for the medium of dialogue, writing on the video is used. This is to enable dialogue while maintaining the traditional practice of taking notes.

  • The image looks like this.

• In summary, we want to create an environment where there is asynchronous dialogue between teachers and students and pseudo-synchronous dialogue among students.

• Progress report

  • There will be a test in the first half of the month.
  • In the second half, there will be “Information Science Masters.”
  • So, we haven’t made much progress compared to last month.

• User testing

  • The basic part of streaming the video using RMTP, receiving it with HLS, and sharing the written content among students is working.
  • Initially, we gathered participants from classmates at school, for example.
  • However, due to the complications of having an Apple Developer License under a parent’s Apple ID, distributing the beta version has been a bit difficult.
  • Also, as a question or concern,
    • What to do with the video used in user testing?
    • For now, we have obtained permission to use past asynchronous video lectures from school teachers.
    • However, there isn’t much content available.
      • I would like to know if there are any lecture sources that do not pose copyright issues.
      • The point of using a pen to write might be considered “alteration,” which is a bit troublesome.
      • I also think that if it’s a closed beta test, there shouldn’t be any problems, or it’s borderline safe. I would like to hear your opinions on this point.

• Backend

  • I have limited experience, so I am learning and experimenting as I go along.- We are currently working on using Firebase’s Realtime Database and GCE instances together.

• The goal is to adjust and synchronize while observing discrepancies between students.

• We will continue working on these in October as well.

• There are some points that I would like to discuss and seek advice on.

• It may be getting risky to still be undecided about the direction, but I think it’s better to talk about the concerns rather than keeping quiet.

• First, regarding dialogue with teachers.

• Recently, there was something that Mr. Inami retweeted, which made me wonder if student dialogue can compensate for the loss of dialogue with teachers.

• Since it’s a real-time environment, I think it would be good for teachers to be able to see the dialogue as well.

• It might be digressing from the main topic, but one idea is to project the written comments using a projector.

• NicoNico (a Japanese video-sharing service)

• We changed the original direction and shifted the focus from being a personal concise tool to student communication.

• However, I’m worried that it may have simply become a clone of NicoNico.

• If asked to point out the differences, there are a few:

  • First, it is specialized for lectures.
  • Also, you can write comments on specific positions in the video.
  • Furthermore, while NicoNico is purely pseudo-synchronous, our platform is designed for real-time and pseudo-synchronous interactions.

• However, I’m starting to think that there may not be any fundamental differences.

• I’m concerned that it might just become a mere derivative of NicoNico.

• Regarding the number of potential users,

• There is a low number of users who own an iPad + Pencil.

• Originally, this was not a big issue because it was meant to be a self-contained tool for individuals.

• However, if the focus shifts to user-to-user dialogue, it becomes a problem.

• This is the result of expanding the concept while maintaining the usage environment.

• Therefore, I would like to discuss these points and seek advice. #未踏2020