Cranium Cafe: Bringing Face-to-Face Interactions to Online Education
Tracy Gorham, CEOCranium Cafe has catered to institutions that understand the value of human interaction and have come up with a solution that aids the teaching staff by providing a more accessible portal for student-faculty interaction. "Our purpose is to make those relationships and connections available to all students, not just the few who have the luxury of lounging around on campus and knocking on doors to take advantage of instructor office hours," says Gorham. To meet this need, Cranium Cafe offers a host of services, including Seamless Learning Management System Integration, Seamless Webpage Integration, Collaboration Board, Archiving, and Video Playback.
Similar platforms available in the market have their limitations with cumbersome setup and security threats. Cranium Cafe's solution has addressed these limitations and its users enjoy easy connectivity, ensuring that students are more likely to reach out for help when they need it rather than simply falling off the radar.
"Our simplicity in execution, coupled with FERPA compliancy to protect student privacy, has created a safe and productive learning environment," she adds.
Samantha, a student enrolled in the distance learning program at Spokane Community College, is a prime example of a student who’s seen the benefits of Cranium Cafe. Samantha balances a fulltime job and a full online course load. Last year she was failing her logic course until she started using Cranium Cafe midway through the term. Their platform helped her meet weekly with her instructor to go through assignments, and enabled her to pass her course.
The merits of Cranium Cafe are also seen by instructors. There are several courses instructors have only reluctantly taught online because they are unable to conduct the discussion component. But with Cranium Cafe, professors are willing to teach these courses as they are able to speak, face-to-face, with their online students even though they're not in a class together. Many schools have taken steps to offer classes to off-campus students. With Cranium Cafe, the potential of these classes improves by providing a secure platform for instant face-to-face communication. "The idea of Cranium Cafe as a `technological solution' is sort of counterintuitive in a way because the early adopters consider us as a way to return to more old-fashioned relationships and connection," says Gorham.
"We’ve been pleased to see that students at our schools have also been connecting online with academic advisors, enrollment officers, tutors, and with other students in their courses," concludes Gorham.
Samantha, a student enrolled in the distance learning program at Spokane Community College, is a prime example of a student who’s seen the benefits of Cranium Cafe. Samantha balances a fulltime job and a full online course load. Last year she was failing her logic course until she started using Cranium Cafe midway through the term. Their platform helped her meet weekly with her instructor to go through assignments, and enabled her to pass her course.
The idea of Cranium Cafe as a ‘technological solution' is sort of counterintuitive in a way because the early adopters seek us out as a way to return to more oldfashioned relationships & connection
The merits of Cranium Cafe are also seen by instructors. There are several courses instructors have only reluctantly taught online because they are unable to conduct the discussion component. But with Cranium Cafe, professors are willing to teach these courses as they are able to speak, face-to-face, with their online students even though they're not in a class together. Many schools have taken steps to offer classes to off-campus students. With Cranium Cafe, the potential of these classes improves by providing a secure platform for instant face-to-face communication. "The idea of Cranium Cafe as a `technological solution' is sort of counterintuitive in a way because the early adopters consider us as a way to return to more old-fashioned relationships and connection," says Gorham.
"We’ve been pleased to see that students at our schools have also been connecting online with academic advisors, enrollment officers, tutors, and with other students in their courses," concludes Gorham.
Company
Cranium Cafe
Headquarters
Salt Lake City, UT
Management
Tracy Gorham, CEO
Description
Cranium Cafe is the student SOS button that offers
instant in-office appointments to your off-campus
students.
