Slack for higher education: Kindai to Become First Japanese University to Invigorate University-wide Communications and Smoothen the Delivery of Online Classes - Kindai University

- Introduction of Slack aims to build a new communication platform for staff and students institution wide

- Utilization of Slack enhances the effectiveness of distance learning solutions

- Expansion of student support through user-friendly Slack

Details of Announcement

Kindai University introduced slack in a staged approach in 2017, starting with the staff of general affairs and IT, in an effort to implement new ways to conduct work, digitization of work and for optimization of business operations. In April 2019, this was expanded to staff institution-wide, with the use of Slack resulting in business operation effectiveness increasing, and rapid transferring of information for work on everyday tasks and for various projects. In addition, in November 2019, a test run in the classrooms of undergrad and post-grad students of the Informatics Department (Faculty of Science and Engineering) was conducted. Slack currently has 12 million active daily users in over 150 countries around the world. In the education sector, it has been introduced to a number of higher education institutions around the world, including Arizona State University and Yale University in the US – Kindai is the first university in Japan to introduce the platform institution-wide. In collaboration with Slack Japan, "Enterprise Grid" – the most significant large-scale organization planner - was used to introduce Slack to students and teachers of six campuses and those involved with managing them, with the aim of reinvigorating communications throughout campuses and faculties and improving the quality of online classes.

Online Classes with Slack

In order to prevent the spread of COVID-19 cases, Kindai University implemented online classes on Monday May 11th. Currently online classes are being conducted on UNIVERSAL PASSPORT (course registrations, noticeboards, etc.), Zoom/Google Meet (video conference systems), Google Classroom (classroom support system), with the utilization of Slack being for further harmonizing of systems. Questions can be freely asked by students over Slack if they don't understand something in their online or On Demand (pre-recorded) classes, and Slack can also be used for the distribution and submission of assignments as necessary.

In addition, by implementing Slack into projects and group through creating channels for likes of laboratories, thesis seminars, basic seminars, practical sessions, and lectures, the convenience of receiving support anyplace and anytime can be realized for students – an improvement over conventional phone calls and emails. Educate and research processes are also expected to be conducted with greater efficiency.

Comment by Seiji Sasaki, Director of Slack Japan K.K.

We are extremely pleased Kindai University will be the first University in Japan to utilize Slack throughout their institution, including for all staff and students, to assist in improving the delivery of education and to invigorate communication. As part of Kindai University's leading initiatives, Slack will be integrated with other IT tools, creating a digital-capable campus platform. We are confident this will allow for smooth support of large-scale online classes and greater efficiency for projects in both education and research work.

About Slack (From Slack Japan Press Release)

Slack is a pioneer in channel-based messaging applications. We have drastically changed the way business communications are undertaken. Right now, there are hundreds of companies using Slack to complete group tasks and consolidate systems into one place, moving their businesses forward. Only Slack is able to offer a secure, enterprise grade environment for the world's largest companies.

Slack is a completely new layer in the crowded business technology sector. A place where "working together" is more efficient, multiple systems are consolidated into one place, and the information you need is easy to find. Slack is at the core of work.

Website: https://slack.com/

Official images: https://brandfolder.com/slack

For media enquiries, please contact koho@kindai.ac.jp , Public Relations Department, Kindai University.