Comments on: Skype Virtual Guest Speakers and Collaboration wiki

By: Interviews Over Skype | ISTE’s NECC09 Blog

Interviews Over Skype | ISTE’s NECC09 Blog — Fri, 20 Mar 2009 15:30:44 +0000

[...] teacher seeking virtual guest speakers and collaborators for your classroom. I learned about it this past January following an ISTE webinar by Leigh Zeitz (Dr. [...]

By: Dan Froelich

Dan Froelich — Tue, 17 Feb 2009 16:41:54 +0000

Just wanted to add a note that my fire has been lit once again. I’ve gotten back on the ball with my Skype in Schools wiki and am currently working with teachers in several school districts to create a change in policies regarding access to Skype as an educational tool. I am currently working on new pieces to add to the Skype wiki. Although I missed your Classroom 2.0 session on Saturday, I have watched the archive and am applying some of those comments to the current wiki and upcoming presentations. Thanks again!

By: Using Skype to Collaborate (Classroom 2.0 Live this Saturday morning) » Moving at the Speed of Creativity

Sat, 14 Feb 2009 05:57:07 +0000

[...] recent post “Skype Virtual Guest Speakers and Collaboration wiki” is among many suggestions for post-show follow-up reading. Peggy and I are scheduled to address the [...]

By: Mark Mikelat

Mark Mikelat — Fri, 09 Jan 2009 15:12:46 +0000

I manage a leads service for professional speakers at http://www.SpeakerLeadsAndTips.com.

Every week I send out speaking opportunities to the professional speakers who are registered.

I have tons of youth and education speakers who are registered. They might enjoy the guest speaker opportunities.

By: Organic Learning » Blog Archive » Interesting Finds in My RSS Reader - January 9, 2009

Fri, 09 Jan 2009 12:28:12 +0000

[...] Skype Virtual Guest Speakers and Collaboration wiki [...]

By: Sue Waters

Sue Waters — Sun, 04 Jan 2009 20:27:32 +0000

Thanks Wes – glad you found it useful. Just to clarify as you use the term Edublogs when describing the list. In this situation I sure you mean Edublogs as educational bloggers as opposed to people whose blogs are hosted by Edublogs.

However it’s important for me to point out that any educator can be added to the list, they don’t have to have a blog with Edublogs or be an educational blogger. If fact there are quite a few on the list that aren’t edubloggers.

By: Wesley Fryer

Wesley Fryer — Sun, 04 Jan 2009 18:38:41 +0000

I have added your EduBlogs skype directory link Sue, and the GSN project registry to the wiki page I maintain on videoconferencing and virtual field trips:

By: Wesley Fryer

Wesley Fryer — Sun, 04 Jan 2009 17:25:54 +0000

Angela: Please let me know if you hear of other virtual guest speaker directories that are being used by K-12 teachers. I agree, Skype is a great tool to introduce early. Since we are accustomed to F2F interactions, it is a tool teachers and students can start readily using. I think to be most effective, synchronous tools like Skype should be used with asynchronous digital storytelling tools like VoiceThread and web-posted videos. This is definitely an exciting area to work in… I am thrilled that decent quality videoconferencing has come to the desktop level, so we don’t have to buy $10K codecs for every videoconference. Certainly H.323 quality is great and needed for some contexts, but for virtual guest speakers I have found Skype and iChat work quite well.

By: Angela Maiers

Angela Maiers — Sun, 04 Jan 2009 15:01:03 +0000

Wes-
Thank you for sharing this with your readers. I was so thrilled when I saw this. The potential is incredible! Skype is one of the first tools I share with teachers new to integrating technology in their classrooms. It gets them hooked immediately, and literally opens up a whole new world of learning and conversation! My head is spinning with possibilities!

By: Leigh Zeitz (Dr. Z)

Leigh Zeitz (Dr. Z) — Sun, 04 Jan 2009 13:32:13 +0000

Wesley,

Yes, the Skype directories are a great idea. While we typically consider “an expert” who might be able to tell us more about a specific topic, one of the greatest ways to use Skype is to collaborate with other classes. You mentioned ePals and the directories you listed are also designed to connect classrooms so that they can work together.

Another resource is the Global School Network http://gsn.org
Operating for almost a quarter of a century, they have been connecting classrooms around the world so that students can learn to work with colleagues who are across town, across the nation or around the world.

Keep up the great coverage.

By: Jay

Jay — Sun, 04 Jan 2009 11:11:45 +0000

Thank you so much for these suggestions. I have been searching something like the examples that you provided for a while. My hope is to show my students that both science and learning occurs outside of the four walls of our room.

By: Sue Waters

Sue Waters — Sun, 04 Jan 2009 05:32:05 +0000

Hi Wes, I've set up a page on the Edublogger called Skype Other Classes to help classrooms to connect with other classrooms. I'm updating the list constantly and it's broken down into country and age of students. The list evolved from this post on Quick Start Tips for New Skype users when readers pointed out issues of finding classes to connect with.

By: Wesley Fryer

Wesley Fryer — Sun, 04 Jan 2009 04:44:16 +0000

Cheryl:

I remember you mentioning your thesis to me in our conversations from the fall! Is your thesis online? If so please share the link!

How do you recommend teachers find others they can connect with via Skype or other videoconferencing programs? How did you get connected in the first place with the Colombia classroom? Is Discovery Education hosting a directory for DEN members wanting to collaborate with video?

By: Cheryl Lykowski

Cheryl Lykowski — Sun, 04 Jan 2009 04:40:00 +0000

Wesley,
I did my Master’s thesis on International Collaboration last year. My students collaborated all year on many levels with a classroom in Bucaramanga, Colombia. The learning that took place was unbelievable! This year we have invited several well-known children’s authors into our classroom via Skype. They spent time answering questions and talking about the writing process. What a great learning opportunity. I definitely believe that video conferencing is an invaluable tool that has opened many doors, not only for my students, but for myself as well.