Today, Mr McNicol’s year 7 class conducted their class meeting via the Skype on-line video conferencing application. Although several students were familiar with Skype or used it at home, we started the session by showing them the following videos.
The second video clip outlined some important techniques to keep in mind when using Skype.
- Look into the camera when you are speaking.
- Introduce yourself before you talk.
- Speak loudly, clearly and slowly.
- Be polite and have good manners.
- Don’t talk when someone else is speaking.
- If you don’t understand what the other person is saying, don’t be afraid to ask them to repeat it.
Two of the student leaders, Darcy and Alisha, then came to my office and made a Skype call to the classroom. Darcy started the conference by reading a few pages of his book to the class. Alisha then asked the class to go to their table groups and discuss options for their fitness program. Back in the classroom, Emmie asked a student from each table to sit in the chair in front of the webcam and report on the options discussed at their table. Each student demonstrated the Skype etiquette they had learned by introducing themselves, looking into the camera and speaking clearly and slowly.
After the Skype session was completed, the class had another short Skype conference with Mr Dow, who was in his office. Six of the students took it in turns to sit in the seat near the webcam and tell Mr Dow one of the six techniques for good Skype etiquette that they had learned.
The quality of the video and audio was very impressive. Nearly every sound in the classroom could be heard and every movement detected, even from the back of the room. This means that it is very important for Skype participants to be quiet and still when they are not talking.
The students were actively involved in this exercise and are already thinking of other ways to use Skype in the classroom. Mr McNicol and I also discussed the use of mobile phones and other portable devices, such as wireless laptops, to make video conferencing possible from more locations around the school.
For more information about Skype, see my previous post titled Using Skype in the Classroom.