Video Conferencing and Breaking Down our Classroom Walls

Applications like Skype, and instant messengers have made the world a smaller place. Global collaboration seems to be a goal, or an initiative, in almost every new report that I have read in the past five years. The district I currently work for in fact has taken on the task of writing their new three year tech. goals plan. Taking into consideration ISTE standards and the National Tech. Plan that was released in November of this year, global collaboration is a 21st century skill that every child should be engaged in. Therefore, it will probably make our list of goals as well, however, I am not seeing a lot of this in the classroom yet.

So what are the hurdles? What keeps teachers from expanding their walls, and reaching out to a larger audience? Is it a safety issue? Is it fear of the unknown?

In many conversations that I have had with teachers, it seems to be a combination of all of these things. Time is always a good argument too! There is never enough time, and after watching the Harry Potter weekend on the Family Channel network this past weekend, I only wish I had one of those time turners that Hermione uses to attend her double class sessions.

Learning new trends in technology does take time, but doesn't everything else we value in life? If learning our math facts takes time, but is still worth it, then isn't learning how to video conference and hold a real conversation face-to-face (albeit it is a virtual face-to-face meeting) equally as important?

In the real world, the students of today will need to know certain skills, have a foundation of background knowledge, and be able to problem solve. These aren't really different then what a good teacher faces every day today, but taking the time to share these with our students seems to be a big time consumer.

Setting up an account on Skype, or any other social network for that matter, can take a little bit of time, however, the time it takes will reap the benefits exponentially if it is done carefully. A Professional Learning Network is really only as good as it's contributors, and therefore a conference also relies heavily on it's counterparts. I mean, you can add friends, follow anyone you want, and certainly video chat with anyone you want. Heck, chatroulette.com gave us that perspective, but that wasn't exactly what we had in mind. Where then can you find a network of other classrooms, great teachers, students willing to learn about other cultures, and collaborative minds waiting to work on a project together?

I came across a tweet and a wonderful blog post about Skype Education by Richard Byrne that pointed me down the path that was exactly what I had been looking for all these years. My light at the end of the tunnel, my pack mule headed into the canyon of global collaboration, and a wonderful resource to connect with professionals and enthusiastic learners all over the world. The hard part is done. The time has just been cut immensely. There are no more hurdles, in fact we are in the home stretch now. It's just a manner of holding that carrot out in front of my colleagues and getting them to bite at the opportunity. Okay, so there still may be some hesitation, but I see great things in our future. Although, I always do, it's getting my peers to jump on board.

Blogging in the Elementary Classroom

A blog, or web log, is a great way to get students interested in writing. A blog is a published piece of writing that is added episodically to a web space. Students now have the ability to post anything and everything they want to the web, however, posting quality work is always encouraged.

As educators, we can enhance learning through blogs. Imagine that you assign your students to read a particular book and reflect on personal experiences that may have a connection to this book and post this to a blog. This assignment doesn’t seem very different then those of 20 - 25 years ago, however, the students’ audience has just grown exponentially! Instead of handing in a piece of paper, or their log book, to the teacher, their classmates, parents, community members, and virtually any reader in the world can read and comment on their reflection. Wouldn’t it be great if the author of the book himself responded to your students’ reflections? Well that can happen with blogs.

There is some fear when using anything on the Internet about student safety and predators just waiting for students to jump  online. Well, I’m not going to lie there is some truth to that, however, when taking the time to plan and create a quality blog site for students there is minimal fears involved. That being said, it is important to not close down the blog and make it too safe, as this will limit the global audience back down to just the classroom. A blog should really expand the walls of a classroom and include a larger audience and culture.

It is important to set a few guidelines with your students. I would recommend seeking out a few movies to start with, such as Blogs in Plain English, or Brainpop’s video on Blogs. Then it is a great idea to involve your students in the conversation of what types of things should be posted. You may also want to review your district’s Acceptable Use Policy (AUP), and publishing permissions. I often suggest only using initials with students or just first names. I also never include actual pictures of the students as the name appearing with the picture isn’t a great idea. You will also want to set the incoming comments to be managed and approved or denied, to make sure no inappropriate comments are posted to your students’ blogs.

Blogs could also be a great way for students to keep an electronic portfolio of their work throughout the year. Imagine publishing products such as illustrations, slideshows, Keynote presentations, and films like public service announcements or commercials to a blog and have the students reflect on their own work after they present their product. This not only adds higher order thinking to your projects, but publishes student work and reflections to a larger audience. Now relatives, friends, peers and just about anyone can view these wonderful digital products and comment on the student's work too.

Anyone can blog, and anyone can post any form of media these days. It's important to plan and think about what is being posted first. Rich content that showcases high quality work is worth sharing with the world. A few sentences about something that was done in class will probably only be read by a select audience. Take the time with your students to plan out what a classroom blog should look and feel like, and if each student should play an integral part in the blog too. It's often a good idea to include the students in the conversation about what is appropriate and high quality content to publish, and possibly  even form rubrics for this material and reflection. What will your class blog about?

Mr. Lawson's eNewsletter for November is all about blogging. Check it out here.