What if teachers could bring the world directly into their classroom? Reach the World is doing just that, using video to offer powerful educational experiences by connecting underserved students in the U.S. with travelers on their journeys across the globe.

As a nonprofit working with students, Reach the World needed to ensure its video communications solution offered robust security features, but was also accessible and easy for travelers to use from different parts of the world. However, the requirements of its legacy solution often prevented Reach the World’s network of travelers from using the solution, and the platform lacked the control and management features required to deliver a quality learning experience.

“One of the biggest issues with Google Hangouts was that you needed a Google account to use it, and not all of our travelers had one,” said Brianna Rowe, Reach the World’s Director of Business Development. “We also had no way to track or monitor who was coming into the meeting or mute the participants, which is really important when you’re working with kids.” 

Connectivity requirements posed another barrier to connecting with travelers in faraway locations, such as the jungles of the Amazon or remote ocean waters.

“We had an opportunity to work with the Weddell Sea Expedition, which was exploring the Weddell Sea in Antarctica,” Rowe said. “When we contacted them and told them we would be communicating via video conferencing, they told us it was impossible due to the remoteness of their location.”

After testing a number of solutions using the limited signal aboard the Weddell Sea Expedition, Zoom was the clear winner. 

“We isolated the internet signal that the ship had for only an hour every week and tested every platform we could think of,” Rowe said. “We tested Google Hangouts, Skype, FaceTime, and a few others, but Zoom had the best performance by far.”

To learn more about how Reach the World is using Zoom to provide safe, secure, and life-changing educational experiences for U.S. students, read the full case study. To learn more about how Zoom helps enable modern learning experiences, visit our Zoom for Education webpage.