Category Archives: Videoconferencing

Videoconferencing is "REAL"

As many of you know, I’m currently teaching an online class – 21st Century Communication Collaborations.

One of the participants in the class is doing Weather Buddies – a year long collaboration with a Dallas ISD class. She described a serendipity moment during their last VC:

In our weather buddies vc my class had written a brief story about a snowy day. We had read the book Snowy Day by Ezra Jack Keats. Several students read their writing to our weather buddies. The media specialist in Texas found the book and gave it to the teacher there during our vc.  My class was so excited to see the very book that we just read. The kids there had made a connection with us and our writing. This was not planned it just happened. I can’t wait to see what they thought of the book!

One of the other participants has not yet done VC with students – and has only experienced Skype with family. This was her response and reflection:

Thanks for pointing out the “realness” that VC allows when you talked about the writing and book connection. Today, walking outside after the snowstorm, a strong feeling of what is real came over me – being outside, interacting with people (my neighbors helped me dig out), my dog trotting, etc.

In the last few years I have increasingly felt that technology is not real – it is somewhat artificial – it doesn’t breathe, think or have emotions and even many projects we do with it, aren’t completely real.

So, your example caused me to think – VC breaks through the artificial aspect of technology – people are real – you can see them, talk to them and feel with them.

Have you experienced this too? Have you noticed how videoconferencing can help you feel so close and connected to students and people so far away? It’s an incredible power to the technology!

Share a story if you too have felt this!

How to Find International Partners

This is an update of a previous post from six years ago! Time to refresh!

So, you want to connect with an international school for a videoconference. Now what do you do? Here’s how I find international partner classes for my teachers.

First, think about times

Before you even start looking for a partner, do a self-check.

  • What time zone are you in? (www.timeanddate.com is a great site for help with time zones!)
  • Are you willing to connect outside of your school hours?
  • If you are willing to connect outside of school hours, how far outside of school hours? Will you have a slumber party at school? Can you only do evenings? Can you do early mornings?
  • If you are not willing to connect outside of school hours, you will need to look at time zones to find the countries that are in session at the same time as you are in session. Do NOT approach an international school and expect them to connect outside of school hours. That is very inconsiderate! Often there are safety and transportation issues for students at international schools to come back to school in the evening.

Then, get on timeanddate.com and get familiar with the time differences between your location and your desired connection location. See if you can figure out ahead of time what will work best.

Second, what do you want to do?

National collaborations between classes are hard enough if your idea is ambiguous. International connections are even more so.

You will get a much better response if you have a very specific idea of what you want to do and when you want to do it (date & time defined but negotiable is best).

Also, make sure that your plans are sensitive to the other country/culture. For example, one of my teachers once wanted to do a collaboration on the U.S. Revolutionary War with the U.K. Well, I know from previous collaborations that the U.S. Revolutionary War isn’t in their curriculum the same as ours. So be sensitive and thoughtful. Think about the content from their perspective if you can. Make sure your plans are open to negotiation as well.

Now, hunt for an international partner

  1. Search CAPspace by country. Don’t post a collaboration looking for an international connection. There are tons of U.S. educators who don’t need the email. Instead, Search People by country. Get their email address and email them directly with your proposal/idea.
  2. Search CILC by country. Go to Videoconference Directories, search by country name in the keyword field. Get the contact email address and email them directly.
  3. Network. Meet people where ever you can! Some places to start include Megaconference Jr., ISTE, and ISTE’s SIG IVC. The more people you meet doing VC, the more connections you make and the more you share collaborations. I carefully save contact info for everyone who emails me and keep folders for states & countries where I know someone doing VC.
  4. Listservs.Megaconference Jr. has a listserv, and even though Megaconference is no longer happening, there is a vibrant community on the listserv (mostly higher ed but they can get you K12 contacts). In addition, on the megaconference websites you can find lists of participants. Just google their school, hunt around on their website, and you can usually find the VC contact person’s email address.
  5. International programs. Did you ever notice you can search content providers by country on VCContentProviders.org? Also when participating in global programs such as those from Global Nomads and Global Education Motivators, you often connect with classes from other countries and therefore can meet and collect contacts that way.

Note: These sites are for advanced H.323 videoconferencing. You can find more sites for Skype here.

Maximize A Response

Now, before you send that email, double check to make sure you have increased the likelihood of getting a response:

  • Did you include a suggested date & time in your time zone AND their time zone?
  • Did you let them know you are flexible on the time?
  • Did you detail specifically what you want each class to do? Did you indicate that you’re willing to negotiate this part also?
  • Is your message easily readable, scan-able, and clear?

Finally, be patient and persistent!

Your Turn

  • What tips would you add?
  • What successes have you had?

Holiday Hoopla Snowman Swap

Yesterday we finished our almost last Holiday Hoopla Snowman Swap. This was a new TWICE collaborative project and my teachers enjoyed it.

However, the snow really got in our way! The connections were supposed to be the last week in December before school was out for the holidays. The last one I have left is on its third reschedule due to snow & illness. But, none of my teachers have complained. They all comment that there’s still plenty of snow and that the VC is still appropriate!

I’ve enjoyed listening to the discussions of how much snow each school has, whether they have snow days, under what conditions they have recess inside instead of outside, etc.

We had a nice collection of creative snowmen. Here’s a few samples of the pairs:

This one was an Australian snowman! It’s hard to see in this picture, but there is a little kangaroo on his blue pants.

As you can tell, students certainly practiced their descriptive writing skills as well as the skill of following directions! This is a simple videoconference format, yet easily adaptable to many different themes. You too could swap snowmen!

Does Rescheduling Drive You Crazy?

Mess by WordRidden

I’m literally snowed under with the rescheduling of Holiday Hoopla videoconferences! Have you ever had so many calls get canceled? Then all of a sudden your email explodes with information about rescheduling, and it drives you nuts to make sense of it! That’s where I am now!

Here’s how I’m trying to get a handle on it:

  1. Deal with one issue at a time. It can be so overwhelming that you don’t know where to start!
  2. Read all the emails, scribbles, notes from voicemails, etc. about that videoconference to get the big picture.
  3. Email everyone involved.
  4. Write a specific short subject lineto help filter emails. I like to use the last names of the teachers in the pair.
  5. Bulleted action items in the email. Easy to scan and easy to answer.
  6. Propose a specific date & time, and give additional options (ranges).

Whew. How do you do handle rescheduling? Any other tips?

Snow Day Etiquette

WSBT News Reports on the Snow

Yay! Today we have a snow day! But, I had five Holiday Hoopla videoconferences and 1 Cleveland Zoo program today. As I’m thinking about those, I thought it would be good for another post on Snow Day Etiquette!

  • Warn. If you think you might have a snow day, email your partner class to let them know! Communicate!
  • Email everyone! As soon as you find out you have a snow day, email everyone involved in the VC – the teachers, the techs, the VC coordinators. Make sure everyone is in on the loop.
  • Phone! If you don’t hear back soon that they got the message about the snow day, call them!! Make sure they know that you’re not available.
  • Reschedule. As soon as possible (even in your first email!), start proposing additional specific dates & times to reschedule. Don’t let it wait too long.

And, while we’re thinking about rescheduling, here are some tips to make sure that you actually do reschedule!

  • Propose specific dates & times. Don’t just say, “Do you want to reschedule?” Of course they do! They worked hard on their presentation like you did. Skip past the fluff of the conversation. Get to the point. Give specific dates & times that you can do.
  • Multiple time zones. If you are working across time zones, give the new dates & times in both time zones. Save time on thinking and conversion for both groups as you try to reschedule. Usetimeanddate.com if you need help.
  • Follow up soon. Partners “grow cold”, just like news leads. Don’t wait too long or everyone will have moved on.

Now, it’s time to make some Christmas cookies: chocolate mint sticks. Yummy! How are you spending YOUR snow day? If you don’t have a snow day, how do you WISH you were spending it?!

New Read Around the Planet Packets

Note: This post is written from my role as a member of the TWICE CAPspace and Read Around the Planet Committee.

Are you participating in Read Around the Planet this year?

Have you participated in the past?

Either way, be sure to get the new packets for Read Around the Planet. They’ve been majorly edited and rewritten.

  • Teacher Packet 2011: includes sample agenda, tips for preparation, ideas for different types of interaction / presentations, ideas for preparing questions and answers.
  • Coordinator Packet 2011: ideas on promoting Read Around the Planet, explanation of the timeline and process of this huge event, tips for preparation and organization, and more.

Don’t forget also these training videos:

These resources can be very helpful for first-time participants, and even useful for past participants to improve participation. Hope you can participate in Read Around the Planet this year!

Top Five Read Around the Planet Pitfalls

Image by Warning Sign Generator

Note: This post is written from my role as a member of the TWICE CAPspace and Read Around the Planet Committee.

Yesterday (December 1) registration opened for Read Around the Planet 2011. As you prepare to register, be careful of these top five Read Around the Planet pitfalls.

5. Procrastinate until the last minute.

  • Verification ends January 7.
  • Teacher registration ends January 13.
  • Don’t wait till the last minute.

Especially if this is your first year, it takes a little time to get your account set up, get your equipment entered, have a test call with one of our faithful RAP Verification Partners. THEN, you can register teachers. Give yourself some time and get verification done NOW!

4. Don’t plan any time in February to make it happen.

Here’s what happens in February:

  • Test calls with each partner class. 20 registrations = 20 different places to connect with! Fun, but it takes time to test!
  • Teachers need to contact each other and discuss the interactive agenda.
  • Any problems or issues that arise need to be solved.

Plan some time for these activities!

3. Be inflexible.

Some connections will have to be rescheduled due to weather, illness, or other unforeseeable events. If you have to reschedule, be kind and understanding. Read more on preparing yourself mentally for RAP.

2. Enter only one registration for multiple sections.

Let’s say your 6th grade teacher needs 5 partners for her 5 sections. Then, you need five registrations. A common mistake is to only do one registration. Then you only get one partner.

One registration = one partner class.

Here’s how it could look:

  • Registration A: Monday, Wednesday or Friday at 8:00 am
  • Registration B: Tuesday or Thursday at 9:00 am
  • Registration C: Monday, Wed, or Friday at 10:00 am
  • Registration D: Tuesday or Thursday at 12:00 noon
  • Registration E: Monday, Tues, Wed, or Friday at 1:00 pm

You know your situation, but enter all the dates a teacher can do for that class period.

1. And the all time, most common and problematic pitfall: Enter only one date & time for your registration.

What’s the likelihood of an exact match when you only enter one day & time? What if there aren’t any other 4th grade classes that chose that time? You’d think with 1950 classes participating, it wouldn’t be a problem, but it still is! Situations that are particularly hard to match include:

  • Only one date & time late in the afternoon
  • Only one date & time and any language (only about 100-150 classes participate in a language other than English each year)
  • Schools that book the RAP dates solid, but each class has only one date & time (these are especially hard to match)

Trust the matching system to make sure you don’t have two RAP connections scheduled at the same time. It checks!!

Enter ALL the dates and times each teacher can do!

So, now, what are you waiting for?! Go register for Read Around the Planet!

Follow me on Twitter to get the daily totals of RAP registrations. Did you know that NY hopes to beat TX this year and AB is planning to beat ON again?

Why You Should Participate in Read Around the Planet 2011

Note: This post is written from my role as a member of the TWICE CAPspace and Read Around the Planet Committee.

Today (December 1) registration opens for Read Around the Planet 2011.

To prepare, let’s consider top ten reasons to participate in Read Around the Planet 2011

10. You want to celebrate reading!

Many classes participating in RAP are celebrating one of these events:

  • Dr. Seuss’ Birthday (March 2)
  • World Book Day (March 5)
  • March is Reading Month

9. You have new VC equipment and need help getting started.

Many first-timers use Read Around the Planet to kick-start their videoconference program.

If it’s your first time, though, don’t sign up 20 teachers! That’s 20 test calls! You’ll go crazy! Start with 5 teachers!

8.You want to expand your videoconference network.

Random matches with lots of different schools means you meet lots of people! The more people you know, the more videoconferences you can do! From your RAP partners, you’ll find some great VC buddies that you can continue to collaborate with in the future.

7. You need a free videoconference.

Participation in Read Around the Planet remains free thanks to sponsorship from Polycom. You do not even need TWICE membership! Anyone with standards-based (H.323) videoconferencing can participate!

6. You want your students to practice another language.

This year’s languages are: English, English as a Second Language, French, Spanish.

Note that language matches may not be at the same grade level.  You have a high chance of matching with native Spanish speakers in Texas; and a pretty good chance of matching with another Canadian French class.

Another option is Special Education, which isn’t another language, obviously, but allows us to match Special Education classes with each other.

5. You don’t want the hassle of finding your own partner.

Let’s face it, sometimes it’s really a pain to find a partner class. What if you need 20 partner classes!? RAP manages all that for you. Just sign up! When partners are announced in late January, you’ll have all their contact information, a date & time, and even their IP address!

4. You want to connect to more schools outside your district/region/state/province.

There are lots of schools from different places participating in RAP. The highest participation is consistently from MI, TX, and NY, with PA not far behind.

We match automatically outside your state. You’ll only get an in-state match if we cannot get a match for you any other way. Last year only 26 (out of 1950) classes were matched with their same state. The way to reduce this possibility is to make sure you register with as many dates & times as you can possibly do. The more dates & times you give, the less your chances of being in the “leftover” hard-to-match pile! But we work really hard to match those too!

3. You want to learn best practices in videoconferencing.

From last year’s survey, participants learned a lot from their partner classes!

Participants learned from each other:

  • new ideas for presentations (79%)
  • new ways to interact via videoconferencing (52%)
  • new ideas for using videoconferencing in their curriculum (34%)
  • and new ways to use their videoconferencing system with camera presets and visuals (25%).

Sometimes, also, you learn what NOT to do! But be patient with your partner; they might be new to VC!

2. You want to address the 21st Century Learning Skills of Communication and Collaboration.

What better way to practice presenting, communicating, speaking slowly and clearly, than with another class! An authentic audience is very motivating to students!

Some classes extend from communication to collaboration. How about writing a collaborative story via email or wiki ahead of time? Then act it out during the VC!

1. It’s fun and exciting to be part of a huge event!

Last year, 1950 classes and 45,000 students participated from Australia, Canada, Costa Rica, Guatemala, United States and United Kingdom. Will you help us hit 2000 classes this year?! Maybe 2010 classes for the 10th year of RAP?!

Are YOU ready to participate in Read Around the Planet 2011?!

RAP / CAPspace Tips for Bridge Operators

Note: This post is written from my role as a member of the TWICE CAPspace and Read Around the Planet Committee.

Did you know Read Around the Planet registration opens tomorrow?

With that in mind, here are two hidden or new features of CAPspace that are very helpful if you run a videoconferencing bridge and have lots of endpoints.

Super Fast Self-Certification

  • Already have a verified MCU and endpoints from last year?
  • Haven’t self-certified them yet for this year?

Here’s the easy way to self-certify:

  • Login to CAPspace
  • Go to My Equipment
  • Find your MCU in the list and click on it
  • Self-certify it
  • Automatically, ALL your endpoints will self-certify also! New as of August!

Then, of course, be sure to update any IPs or tech contacts that have changed for the endpoints.

Indicate the Test Call Contact

Ever connected to a RAP partner that has 3 or 4 or 5 tech contacts listed? Annoyed that you don’t know who to contact?

Start fixing this by marking the test call contact for your own units. This feature is new this week!

These instructions assume:

  • That you have multiple tech contacts listed on your equipment profile(s)
  • That those tech contacts have CAPspace accounts
  • That you created the equipment profile
  • That one of the other tech contacts on the equipment profile is the person who really does the test calls & connections

Ok, here’s what to do:

  • Login to CAPspace
  • Go to My Equipment
  • Click the name of an endpoint where you know the test call contact isn’t the person who created the equipment profile
  • On the left under Administration Tasks, choose Assign Primary Test Call Contact
  • Select the right person and update!

By default, the person who created the equipment profile is the Primary Test Call Contact. Use this new feature only if you need to change it.

For example, in my area, some of my coordinators do their own RAP registration, test calls and connections. In these cases, I want to mark that they are the main test call contact, not me.

Now, are you ready for Read Around the Planet registration to open tomorrow?!

Celebrating Thanksgiving with Turkey Trade

Today, among other things, we have several classes participating in Turkey Trade. This is a modification of the Monster Mayhem – which is just an all round great experience for students to practice their writing and following directions.

Here are some turkey pairs from today:

2nd grade

5th grade

3rd grade

Another great day of learning, comparing, and testing students’ descriptive writing skills!