Abstract: Embodiments include an apparatus and method for building courses. For example, one embodiment of a course builder apparatus comprises: a course builder application to retrieve data from a database, the data usable for constructing one or more online courses; a graphical user interface (GUI) of the course builder application for designing an online course, the GUI comprising: a template region in which one or more published classroom activity templates and/or step templates are graphically displayed; an editing region into which a designer of a course may select and drag one or more of the published classroom activity templates or step templates, the editing region comprising one or more fields or other graphical elements to allow the designer may edit the one or more published classroom activity templates or step templates.

Abstract: A scalable virtual conferencing system which implements a hub and spoke architecture. For example, one embodiment of a scalable virtual conferencing system comprises: a participant management module to logically group each participant in the virtual conferencing system into a hub or one of a plurality of spokes; and a data flow management module to control communication of information between participants in the spokes and participants in the hub, the data flow management module to limit intercommunication from the spokes to the hub in accordance with the manual user input and/or participant management policy; wherein at least one participant in a first spoke is designated as a spoke leader for the first spoke, the spoke leader logically grouped into both the hub and the first spoke, the data flow management module to allow information generated within the first spoke to be propagated into the hub based on input from the spoke leader.

Abstract: Embodiments include an apparatus and method for building courses. For example, one embodiment of a course builder apparatus comprises: a course builder application to retrieve data from a database, the data usable for constructing one or more online courses; a graphical user interface (GUI) of the course builder application for designing an online course, the GUI comprising: a template region in which one or more published classroom activity templates and/or step templates are graphically displayed; an editing region into which a designer of a course may select and drag one or more of the published classroom activity templates or step templates, the editing region comprising one or more fields or other graphical elements to allow the designer may edit the one or more published classroom activity templates or step templates.

Abstract: A scalable virtual conferencing system which implements a hub and spoke architecture. For example, one embodiment of a scalable virtual conferencing system comprises: a participant management module to logically group each participant in the virtual conferencing system into a hub or one of a plurality of spokes; and a data flow management module to control communication of information between participants in the spokes and participants in the hub, the data flow management module to limit intercommunication from the spokes to the hub in accordance with the manual user input and/or participant management policy; wherein at least one participant in a first spoke is designated as a spoke leader for the first spoke, the spoke leader logically grouped into both the hub and the first spoke, the data flow management module to allow information generated within the first spoke to be propagated into the hub based on input from the spoke leader.