Finding new ways to teach children is always on the minds of teachers. One of CRC’s most successful demonstration projects over the past few years has helped teachers with just that challenge: the MusicGrid program. This program brought together students from across the country to learn music and share their experiences using broadband technology.

The success of the program was such that, when the original funding for the program from CANARIE expired in 2004, many of the schools invested their own funds to keep it going on their own, realizing the extraordinary value students were getting through MusicGrid.

Today, CRC continues to support the program and is working on new ways to improve the technology used. Incorporating new High Definition video conferencing will allow better visual quality, allowing teachers to better help students with details such as fingering when playing an instrument. CRC is also working on reducing the time delay in the transmission and processing of the signal by using uncompressed high definition video conferencing, removing up to a full second of delay from the process.

Teachers are still learning how best to teach and engage students in a broadband enabled learning environment. By incorporating these new technologies into the new MusicGrid, researchers hope to be able to determine if improved technology and improved image and sound quality will be reflected in a better learning experience for students.