PLEASANTON, CA--(Marketwire - Mar 1, 2012) - [ Polycom, Inc ]. (NASDAQ: [ PLCM ]), the global leader in standards-based unified communications (UC), today announced Marci Powell, Polycom global director of Education and the chair emerita and past president of United States Distance Learning Association (USDLA), will speak on the latest trends in global e-learning at the New Learning Cultures Summit on Friday, March 2, at the Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University (Senate Hall, North Campus) in Port Elizabeth, South Africa. The summit, sponsored by the South African Higher Education Access and Development Services (HEADS) organization and Center for Teaching Learning and Media (CTLM), is focused on new learning environments and how educators and school administrators can prepare themselves and their students to thrive in the 21^st century.

During her keynote address, Powell will discuss how teachers can facilitate new collaborative learning environments and address some of the hottest technology trends such as mobility, cloud computing, video collaboration, and unified communications. She will also share details on how to create student-centered environments where teachers guide students to learn how, where, and when they learn best, creating a highly collaborative and connected environment for continual improvement. This student-centric approach uses technology to help students synthesize content, solve problems, connect with experts, and collaborate in geographically dispersed teams, preparing them with the skills necessary to succeed in today's global business environment.

"It's an honor to speak at the Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University and offer educators and school administrators practical ideas and solutions to create the best learning environment for their students," said Powell. "Whether it is communicating with an expert in the field without leaving the school grounds or bringing distant classrooms of students together to increase cultural understanding, Polycom RealPresence video solutions create an environment where students can interact in crystal-clear video and audio just as if they're in the same room together. For students, video collaboration is like having an instant passport that transcends traditional walls, time zones, and schedules, offering a stimulating and illuminating learning environment."

Schools face serious obstacles to student achievement such as strained budgets, large class sizes, low family literacy, and high student mobility. In this difficult environment, schools are charged with preparing the next generation of leaders, entrepreneurs, and employees for today's digital world and global economy. To meet the challenge, schools are using video collaboration solutions to give students more interactive, immersive, and innovative educational experiences. Video collaboration provides value for schools, teachers, and students by multiplying content resources and enabling collaboration opportunities that either did not exist or logistically would have been too difficult to facilitate.

Polycom Video Collaboration and Education
Four of the world's top five colleges and universities as well as hundreds of schools, colleges, and universities around the world -- such as Georgetown University, University Paris-Descartes, University Reims Champagne, and Cornell Johnson School of Management -- are using Polycom to improve all facets of education from teaching and advanced blended (in-person and via video) learning applications to course development and administrative meetings. A broad portfolio of Polycom^® RealPresence^® Video Solutions, designed by educators, for educators, brings secure, easy-to-use video collaboration within reach. For students, video collaboration can bring them potentially anywhere, face-to-face with anyone, from the safety and comfort of their classroom. Easy for nontechnical teachers to use, Polycom solutions and intuitive interfaces ensure adoption and drive a higher return on investment. Teachers can develop more deeply engaging lesson plans that incorporate virtual excursions, interactions with remote experts and environments, and joint classes with students in other countries. To learn more about Polycom education solutions, visit [ www.polycom.com/solutions/industry/education ].

About Polycom
Polycom is the global leader in standards-based unified communications (UC) solutions for [ telepresence ], [ video ], and [ voice ] powered by the Polycom^® RealPresence^® Platform. The RealPresence Platform interoperates with the broadest range of business, mobile, and social applications and devices. More than 400,000 organizations trust Polycom solutions to collaborate and meet face to face from any location for more productive and effective engagement with colleagues, partners, customers, specialists, and prospects. Polycom, together with its broad partner ecosystem, provides customers with the best TCO, scalability, and security for video collaboration, whether on-premises, hosted, or cloud delivered. Visit [ www.polycom.com ] or connect with Polycom on [ Twitter ], [ Facebook ], and [ LinkedIn ].

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