Exploring Cold Data Storage Solutions in Higher Education

The evolution of data storage has seen a shift from traditional physical media to more advanced and flexible solutions, such as cloud storage. Cloud computing has revolutionized the way organizations manage and access their data, offering scalable, cost-effective, and convenient storage options.

In the start of the 21st century, early cloud storage providers began offering scalable solutions for data storage that didn’t require companies to keep and maintain server rooms on site. Today, many businesses and organizations of all sizes create and store large amounts of data for a variety of reasons.

”In the context of data storage, cold storage refers to storing data that doesn’t need to be accessed frequently but needs to be preserved for compliance, regulatory reasons, backup, or archival.”

Advantages to Storing Media in Cold Storage

In the context of data storage, cold storage refers to storing data that doesn’t need to be accessed frequently but needs to be preserved for compliance, regulatory reasons, backup, or archival. A network of connected devices is used to save files, documents and other media to a remote database, rather than storing them on a computer’s hard drive, a local storage device or an on-site server maintained by the organization. Information is accessible when needed, but not taking up active storage space.

Storing media in cold storage offers several advantages, particularly for institutions that need to retain large amounts of data for long periods of time.

• Cost-Effectiveness: Cold storage solutions are significantly more cost-effective than traditional storage options, including for third-party providers like Zoom, Class Collaborate, Webex, and Teams.
• Long-Term Retention: Cold storage is designed for long-term data retention, which can be archived and stored for regulatory compliance, historical records, or in other instances where immediate access is not required.
• Data Preservation: Cold storage systems are optimized for data durability and reliability. They use redundant storage mechanisms and data integrity checks to ensure that data remains intact over time, reducing the risk of data loss due to hardware failures or other issues.
• Scalability: Institutions can easily scale their cold storage solutions as their data storage needs grow. This allows them to adapt to changing requirements without significant infrastructure changes.
• Data Security: Cold storage systems can offer enhanced security features, such as encryption at rest, to ensure that archived data remains protected from unauthorized access.
• Regulatory Compliance: Many institutions are required to retain data due to regulatory or legal obligations. Cold storage provides a reliable way to meet these requirements.
• Backup and Disaster Recovery: Cold storage can serve as a secondary backup option for critical data, providing an additional layer of protection against data loss due to disasters or hardware failures.

Manage Large Data Workloads With Ease

YuJa Himalayas Enterprise Archiving Platform helps institutions manage large workloads, identify compliance issues and create data retention policies, which are built in the cloud and meets SOC-2 Compliance standards.

Whitepaper: US Department of Justice and Department of Education Warn Educational Institutions That ‘Accessibility Cannot Be an Afterthought’

The letter covers accessibility challenges, legal framework, enforcement actions, and guidance and regulations, as well as highlights valuable resources for obtaining guidance. It also sends a strong message that accessibility is a priority at the federal level and that the government will use its authority to ensure institutions are meeting accessibility standards. 

“Online accessibility for people with disabilities cannot be an afterthought.”

We’ve created a whitepaper that highlights the importance of digital accessibility, along with each of the sections of the letter and what they mean for higher education today.

Read the full whitepaper

Case Study: SUNY Corning Community College Leverages the YuJa Enterprise Video Platform for Instruction and Other Uses Across its Campus

One of the community colleges in the State University of New York (SUNY) system, Corning Community College is a public community college in Corning, New York. It was initiated in 1957 and moved to its Spencer Hill campus in 1963. This two-year college serves three counties: Steuben, Chemung, and Schuyler.

Read the full case study.

The Benefits of HTML5-Based Video Delivery

YuJa’s HTML5 Player offers a versatile, customizable experience for users on any device, whether it’s a desktop computer, laptop, tablet, Apple or Android mobile device. The HTML5 Player is available for both single-stream and multi-stream video recordings, and can be branded to match the institution’s colors. Users can easily modify the viewing experience to meet their own needs by resizing windows, expanding or reducing the Sidebar, and toggling thumbnails and captioning on or off.

In addition, the HTML5 video editor is non-destructive, which means you can roll back mistakes. This is a benefit for students in rural areas where the internet connection may cut out, as it prevents loss of content. Below are some of the other widespread benefits of HTML5 for institutions and students:

Benefits for Institutions

While users may see the benefits of HTML5 technology in the user experience, some of the benefits of HTML5 provide institutions with improved functionality and ease-of-use.

• Branding and Customization: HTML5 technology facilitates color customization of the Media Player, including navigation bars, EnterpriseTube, and adding customization by departments to help make the library and video player have the look and feel of your organization.
• Accessibility: HTML5 offers increased accessibility options and 508 compliance, necessary in today’s world.
• Implementation of Mobile Programming: With full playability on a range of devices, HTML5 enables institutions to offer lecture captures and other programming on desktops, laptops, tablets, and mobile devices.

Benefits for Users

HTML5 offers an ideal solution for students to view media on any device with a versatile and functional video experience. Users will see all of the following with HTML5:

• Shorter Loading Times: HTML5 provides a faster and better viewing experience than other types of video players, with reduced buffering times, even for users on slower internet connections.
• Enhanced Playability: Since HTML5 technology is browser-based, it works effectively on nearly any system, including Windows, iOS, and Android. Streaming is accessible on both computers and mobile devices.
• Reduced Battery Drain: Playing video in an HTML5 player requires less battery power, whether the user is streaming video on a laptop, tablet, or smartphone.
• Additional Interactivity Options: HTML5 streams provide interactivity through captions, subtitles, thumbnails, and various playback controls that students can adjust based on their preferences.

Benefits of a Video CMS

Video learning helps both instructors and students. In fact, 81% of US college students said digital learning technologies helps them to improve their grades, according to Statista, and instructors continue to advocate for more online learning courses and educational resources. Consider the following benefits of a video CMS for your organization:

• A VCMS Offers Customized Roles with Limited Training

  “81% of US college students said digital learning technologies helps them to improve their grades, according to Statista, and instructors continue to advocate for more online learning courses and educational resources.

  A video CMS enables the organization to set specific roles or access levels to information and to customize who can see specific media files. This increases security, and offers the ability to share content with either a broader or a more limited audience. Using a video CMS limits the amount of training required for staff and users, and enables everyone to access information, regardless of technical skills.

• Cloud-based Storage is Scalable

  Cloud-based storage provides a video solution that is fully expandable. If you need more space for video storage, there is no need to invest in new hardware or systems with cloud-based storage solutions. Additionally, a video CMS has been designed to manage large files.

• A Video CMS Can Help Ensure Security

  A video CMS is the ideal way to secure media content with security features that enable you to protect sensitive data. Those who are supposed to have access to content will be able to quickly and easily find what they need in a secure environment.

• A VCMS Enhances Organization and Searchability

  In order to make use of video and media content, users must be able to find content quickly and easily. A well-organized video CMS provides multi-level organization, folders, and sub-folders to store videos and other media. A well-designed video CMS also enables searching organizational video content, including captions, slide content, and metadata.

• Video Content is Available on Any Device

  Video content needs to be available to users on a variety of platforms, including mobile devices. A video content management system optimizes content for playback on multiple platforms.

• A VCMS Makes Compliance a Simple Process

  A video CMS makes maintaining regulatory compliance, including with Section 508, ADA, FERPA, HIPAA, and other Compliance, a simple process. Captioning, audio descriptions and keyboard controls facilitate video use in a range of situations and for various needs.

• A Video Platform is an Affordable Solution

  Expanding existing hardware and staff to meet the needs of video storage, delivery and organization can be costly. Opting to use a software-based tool to meet these needs reduces investment in both hardware and staff.

Improve Employee Onboarding with Video Training

Effective employee onboarding helps maximize productivity, reduce stress, and improve staff retention. In fact, employee onboarding is one of the best uses of HR teams, providing significant reward for both new employees and corporations or institutions. 

Well-executed onboarding leads to both increased profits and improved employee satisfaction. Research shows that great employee onboarding: 

• Improves retention by 82% 
• Increases productivity by 70% and 
• Is critical for the success of new hires, with 93% of employers surveyed saying the experience was key to success in an employee’s role. 

Using tools provided within the YuJa Enterprise Video Platform, trainers can provide onboarding activities in a variety of ways, such as:

• Micro-lesson video recording, which facilitates corporate microlessons; 
• Social learning, which allows real-time discussion and promoted media engagement; or 
• span style=”font-weight: 400;”>Video conferencing, which offers engaging options for virtual lessons, desktop sharing, collaboration and more. 

Create Quality Onboarding with E-Learning and Video Content

“Companies want to help employees adjust to the corporate culture, provide needed information for employees to perform their job functions, and improve overall productivity of new hires.”

The goals of onboarding are relatively simple. Companies want to help employees adjust to the corporate culture, provide needed information for employees to perform their job functions, and improve overall productivity of new hires.

Quality onboarding:

• Aligns new hires to corporate themes, culture, and goals.
• Provides self-sufficiency for new employees.
• Increases employee satisfaction.
• Builds a good image of your company.

Opportunities to Enhance Onboarding

Even well-designed onboarding programs can have some areas for improvement.

• At many companies, employee onboarding is short and focuses on paperwork. It may, at some companies, last only a day to a week. To remedy this, add online and video learning elements to your onboarding. 
• Onboarding programs may not meet the needs of different types of learners. To help work through this, incorporate things like quizzes, visual presentations, webinars, and other elements that help all new hires be successful.   
• Common onboarding strategies may not provide cross-functional insights or information about the skills of new employees that will help them as they begin collaborating and working outside with other departments. 

Consider Implementing Pre-boarding at Your Company

Onboarding often begins on the first day of work; however, more and more companies are introducing pre-boarding, which is when a new hire receives essential information before they officially begin their work duties.

Pre-boarding does not have to be intensive to be effective, and it doesn’t even need to be face-to-face.

• Provide employees with information about where to go, who to see, and how their day will go before the first day. Make sure that details about parking, security, and commonly asked questions are addressed. Video tours are an ideal way to share this with your new hires.
• Take care of essential paperwork ahead of time. This reduces the work required on the first day and allows employees to move straight to more active onboarding. Online video tutorials are an effective support for this paperwork.
• Make sure employees have the name and contact information for key staff, including their supervisors and human resources.

Pre-boarding can be done via email, online, or through video. You can even provide pre-boarding information on paper when an employee is hired.

Improving Onboarding for Your New Hires

Modern onboarding is moving out of the traditional office space, and in new directions. Implementing some of these strategies can make onboarding more rewarding for your employees, help them reach maximum productivity, and work to create a unified (and happy) corporate culture.

Good onboarding makes a difference for companies, for managers and for new hires. Setting up your new employees for success benefits everyone in the office, from the top down.

Bring Lectures to Students On the Go with YuJa’s Mobile Apps

The YuJa app is an ideal addition to the YuJa learning platform. It enables students to access:

1. Course lecture captures.
2. Uploaded external video content from the Media Channel.
3. Social learning features, including real-time discussions.

Additionally, the Video Platform offers a HTML5-based media player designed for optimal device playback. They provide adaptive bitrate streaming, network-sensing technology and interactive capabilities.

Users can simply download the YuJa app from the Apple App Store for iOs or the Google Play store for Android devices and log in using their SSO, either with their established YuJa login or a login provided via email (for institutions that rely on LTI-Integration). This maintains login for a set duration of time, offering students increased ease of access.

YUJA MOBILE APPS PROVIDE REAL-WORLD APPLICATIONS

The YuJa mobile app facilitates learning in a wide variety of situations with exceptional practicality for hands-on training in various fields since the device and lectures can accompany the student wherever they go.

• With the mobile app, a medical student can watch or re-watch a procedure or demonstration from multiple angles. This provides ongoing support for students during training, improving their ability to learn and maximizing the effectiveness of hands-on training.
• During student teaching or teaching practicums, students in the education field can take techniques and lessons from lectures with them to their new classrooms to support their students.
• For engineering and other technical students, integrated presentation media mean that lecture captures can bring diagrams and blueprints home, to the lab, or to the office on a mobile device.

Remote vs Online Learning: What’s the Difference?

The terminology has caused confusion among students and the public at large, but the main differences lie in planning and preparation for these courses. 

Remote learning:

• This type of education is an “emergency measure used to assure continuity of learning.”
• Faculty must quickly adapt and use whatever tools are at their disposal, even if they’re not designed for educational purposes. 
• This type of education may lack user experience if instructors aren’t trained to use available resources.
• Students may or may not have access to technology and internet connectivity needed to fully participate in courses without institutional technology at their disposal.

Online learning: 

• Online courses are purposefully planned and designed to function in an online environment.
• Technology and tools are selected to support the instruction and to help meet objectives.
• Faculty are trained and supported in their use of online teaching tools. 
• Students only enroll in the course if they have the technology and tools to help them be successful.

During the pandemic, many realized that the flexibility of online learning is a benefit that should be afforded to all students, even beyond lockdowns and emergency situations. To that end, selecting technology to support true online learning is critical. 

Create a Successful Online Course With Tools that Support Online Learning

“Courses and content should be available 24/7, so students can learn anywhere, and using any device.”

For a successful online learning experience, a strategic approach must be taken to ensure: 

Availability. Courses and content should be available 24/7, so students can learn anywhere, and using any device. Offering downloadable documents for offline viewing, adaptive bitrate playback, and delivery that facilitate support across a broad range of devices all will help students and instructors be successful. 

Accessibility. Courses should be accessible to all, including providing accessibility features like closed-captioning, high contrast options, compatibility with screen readers, and adherence to standard accessibility templates and frameworks. 

Interaction. Enabling interaction between the instructor and students, and among learners, is important to facilitate idea and knowledge sharing. Each individual should be able to contribute to the learning process. 

Integration. Learning tools should all work together to support your learning ecosystem. Ensure your solution includes enterprise connectors and integration points for cross-compatibility with your LMS, SSO, and other learning tools. 

Support. Train and support both instructors and students in their online educational journey.

Inside Higher Ed concluded that as institutions work to meet the needs of students, they must intentionally design online learning. “We certainly do not expect all courses to be online in the future, but institutions would do well to support all faculty in leveraging digital learning tools and best practices… To best employ such tools in serving students, institutions will need to rely on thoughtful technology selection, faculty development, instructional design and application of proven frameworks to best ensure quality online learning.”

Competency-Based Learning: How to Support Non-Traditional Students

What Is Competency-Based Education?

Competency-based education (CBE), or personalized learning, combines the assessment of existing skills with mastery-based academic progression. With this model, instructors assess the knowledge and experience students already possess through work and life experience. Then, individualized educational plans can be created to best meet the needs of non-traditional learners, many of whom are in the workforce as they work toward earning a degree. 

Learner-centric in nature, interest in CBE has grown in higher education over the past decade, and adoption efforts span all institution types, according to the National Survey of Postsecondary Competency-Based Education (NSPCBE).

CBE FOR NONTRADITIONAL LEARNERS

“More research is needed, but early indications suggest that CBE programs often serve a greater proportion of students with prior credits than traditional programs, and institutions price their CBE programs so that the amount students pay may be similar to or lower than for traditional programs,”

Personalized learning solutions offer improved access to education, particularly for non-traditional learners such as adults who are returning to school after years away, and students with families.

“More research is needed, but early indications suggest that CBE programs often serve a greater proportion of students with prior credits than traditional programs, and institutions price their CBE programs so that the amount students pay may be similar to or lower than for traditional programs,” the report noted.

For a student with significant relevant experience, course progression may occur quite rapidly. Non-traditional students may find personalized education more manageable and affordable.

YUJA AND COMPETENCY-BASED EDUCATION

Traditional classroom structures can fail to support competency-based learning—these set-ups require students to move through material at approximately the same pace, regardless of personal understanding.  

YuJa provides video capture and integrated social tools that enable students to tailor their learning path to reflect their strengths and interests, as well as tools that make attending flipped courses more convenient for the student and easy for the instructor. 

INCREASING COMPETENCY-BASED LEARNING IN HIGHER EDUCATION

Competency-based learning leans on innovative technological solutions to help non-traditional students thrive.  A 2020 State of the Field study by American Institutes for Research found that between 2018 and 2020, 128 unique institutions have reported offering at least one operating CBE program, for a total of 1,057 CBE programs. 

Further, 82% of institutions expect the number of CBE programs in the US to increase in the next five years. 

“Despite the major disruptions to institutional operations due to the COVID-19 pandemic, we see evidence of growth in programs and optimism about the future of CBE, even though barriers remain,” it concluded. 

Case Study: Entire North Dakota University System Relies on YuJa to Deliver Top-Notch Educational Experiences

“One of our institutions, University of North Dakota, started an RFP for a video service, so we decided to join their search along with the other 10 institutions,” explained Randy Wald, Operations Manager, Academic Services and Training. Wald and his team support learning technologies across the system, as well as provide training and best practices.

Based on usability, tools offered, its clean aesthetic and affordability, YuJa came out on top.

Read the full case study here.