1. Web 2.0 Application Review (Skype)
Skype is a software application that allows users to have a spoken conversation with
someone over the internet using a webcam. It’s just like making a phone call except you can see
the person you are talking to. Skype promotes collaboration by allowing the users to see and
communicate with one another in real-time. Skype can be used in the classroom to let the class,
as a whole, communicate with other classes in the United States and even around the world.
When I was in high school, our history class participated in a videoconference with other
classes. It was a new form of technology then that was being tested among high school classes.
We had some type of debate about a current issue with two different classes in different states. It
was a fun experience for me then, and I think it would be great to use in the classroom now.
In health class, one way I would incorporate Skype is by having videoconferences with
other classes across the nation to compare and contrast projects and research that they discovered
during different activities and assignments. It would be used best if I was in contact with another
teacher that would have his or her students participate in the same project-based learning
activities as my students. This would definitely promote globalizationand critical thinking, and
could promote the other pillars of 21st
century education as well.
Here is an example of what a videoconference in the classroom via Skype may look like: