This workshop was great! The presenter was very knowledgeable and she hosted 3 live video conferences during the workshop. She talked about the importance of collaboration in videoconferencing – not just with partners but with other people doing videoconferencing to make connections and learn from one another.
Another important point she made was to know why you need videoconferencing because no matter what tech team you work with they will always object to the amount of bandwidth it takes. So it is critical to have educational purpose in any discussion with administrators when discussing videoconferencing.
She gave an example of 2 classes that had been working on a project together using email and webquests and when they had their first videoconference was when they realized they were both special education classes. Before that the students never knew – so it is an important tool for all classes.
One videoconference was with the museum she worked at and they took questions on presenting content via videoconferencing. That was a point to point IVC. Using Polycom at both sites she emphasized the ease of use and the plug and play aspect for a teacher using this technology.
The next videoconference was with Polycom talking about equipment options and set up options. They recommended a whitepaper on their site for technicians with questions on IVC and firewalls.
The third videoconference was with a man in Ohio. He has created wireless videoconferencing. The system can run on battery power or AC. The camera is placed on a cart and therefore it can be moved while videoconferencing. Excellent tool for museums! The company works with you on establishing wireless access – it is done on 802.11 B or G and 3 times the range with one access point. (4400 square feet per access point)
This workshop was very beneficial to me because I got to talk with experienced people and other brand new people. It gave me an idea of types of projects people are working on. I also liked being able to see the 3 live IVC demonstrations in person! The facilitator, Mano, was very helpful and I saw her many times throughout the conference. This workshop was the only workshop sponsored by ISTE – which shows the growing importance of IVC in the classroom!
Resources:
http://www.c-it.net/ - wireless videoconferencing
http://www.kidlink.org/english/general/intro.html - international videoconferencing and collaboration
http://www.gng.org/ - international IVC programming
http://www.uark.edu/depts/coehp/de/debasics/index.html - tips and etiquette
http://www.teacherresourcebank.com/VTV/what_is_vtv.html - what is videoconferencing
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
No comments:
Post a Comment