Last Updated on Wednesday, 21 September 2011 13:48 Tuesday, 26 July 2011 16:49
The Future of Educational Technology
Online Communication Tools: Extending the Learning Hand Over and Beyond Classrooms
by Katrina Del Rosario
Tools for remote communication, although initially looked upon with disapproval because of the distractions that they can cause to students, are now being effectively adopted to the learning system. These tools offer the potential for making it easier to go beyond the boundaries of classroom walls and connecting with peers from all over the globe for a more open and diverse learning experience.
If you can’t beat ‘em, join ‘em!
“Skyping with Kari’s Dad” by broox
Enemies of Yesterday, Friends of Today
Several online sources that were previously known to simply take the focus of students away from school work no longer are—instead, they are cleverly being utilized to serve otherwise. These are tools that make it possible for a student at his "learning moment" to promptly get the information he needs, wherever he is. For example, instant messages (or “tweets” as they are called) are immediately transmitted and accessed anytime and anywhere through Twitter, a popular online microblog application not bound by time or physical constraints. Although it is not synchronous as live chat is, it enables its users to easily put up a brief post of 140 characters that is excellent for a quick tip about a lesson, a reminder for homework, updates on quizzes and schedule changes, and much more.
With regard to synchronous messaging platforms, one problem that arises is that there are just so many of them! One solution for this is Meebo, a Web-based application capable of hosting several instant messaging (IM) accounts (e.g., Yahoo! Messenger, MSN messenger, etc.) simultaneously, eliminating the need to download numerous software for various IM platforms and the inconvenience of several pop-up windows blocking the screen all at once! For a teacher, this simultaneous feature helps keep her list of online students on check without having to go through the lifeless cycle of signing in to and out of different accounts, and working with changing chat interfaces and buttons every now and then. She can have everything and everyone in just one place.
Twitter and Meebo are also available for mobile devices, allowing their users to access updates on the go. Now that learning is not exclusively isolated in school, students can learn (and be reminded of, immediately) about school-related stuff wherever they are!
Sandy was saying, “OMG, that tweet about the Murphy’s Law
and that sweet Buttered Cat Paradox was like, so fetch.”
“Cellphone” by Alpha India Romeo
Another messaging platform, Skype, has become very popular for its convenience. Not only does it allow instant messaging, it also hosts free voice calls to and online video conferencing with other Skype users. The application, therefore, makes it possible for students to connect with fellow students and even field experts from all over the world via long distance video calls. Students can talk and interact with authors whose books they wrote reports on; experts can speak to interested students about a specific subject matter; or, a class can hold a live streaming field trip. A willing student can still attend class even when he/she is physically unable to go to school. One such remarkable instance is when a fourth grade class used Skype to have a Leukemia-stricken classmate keep “attending” her classes. Another benefit of video conferencing is exemplified in how foreign language teachers use Skype to have students interact with native speakers of the language in question for firsthand learning of the language.
One online channel offering live streams perfect for virtual field trips and "real-time learning" is also garnering attention—Ustream. Below is a live stream from the Georgia Aquarium in Atlanta, Georgia. It is a special live broadcast in celebration of Discovery Channel’s Shark Week.
Of course, there are also online communication tools with features specifically developed for in-school usage; one of which is Edmodo, a private microblogging platform that gives students and teachers alike a secure place to manage classroom work, activities, and conversations.
Edmodo demo video from youtube.com
There are many other tools available online and more are being developed. With much advancement in Information Technology today, schools can even develop their very own online communication tools. In the local scene, some universities have already taken things into their own hands (especially in consideration of the countless holidays and extremely unpredictable weather changes) and have put up sections of their websites where students can access and download quizzes and lessons they missed. Good examples are E-leap of the University of Santo Tomas’ website, and My.Lasalle of the De La Salle University.
Teachers who have taken advantage of the Web’s flexibility do the following: post documents, lessons, and various media in their blogs; upload audio or video recordings of classroom lectures on a website accessible to students; and even write commentaries or reflections on topics discussed in class.
Meanwhile, blogging is good for starters since it is only a matter of incorporating media and putting in links to related sources. One option is to use Tumblr. It is a short-form blog that allows postage of several media: audio, video, pictures, and text entries. It is particularly popular because it is very easy to use, maintain, and connect with other blogs and bloggers with similar interests (click here for a list of teachers on Tumblr!). For more advanced bloggers/teachers, Blogspot or WordPress may be more appropriate. Both are a waterhole for professional and esteemed bloggers, and feature a multifaceted user-interface that allows one user to have multiple blogs and/or authors in one account.
Potential for Great Things
With all these, it seems that online communication tools have proven that its value lies beyond mere social interactions. Access to these tools gifts students with great opportunity to have an enhanced experience of learning. Students get to have a bigger playing field where they could exercise their full potentials. They also develop global awareness, learn to have their own a public voice, create connections with peers from all over the world, and hopefully gain a deeper, firsthand understanding of how other things, other people, and other places and cultures work.
Further Reading:
Top 20 Teacher Blogs by Scholastic Inc.
50 Awesome Ways to Use Skype in the Classroom
References/ Works Cited:
broox. “Skyping with Kari’s Dad.” Photograph. flickr.com. Yahoo! Southeast Asia Pte. Ltd., 08 October, 2010. Web. 13 July 2011.
Johnson, L., Levine, A., Smith, R., and Smythe, T. “Online Communication Tools.” 2009 Horizon Report: K-12 Edition. New Media Consortium, 2009. Web. 13 July 2011.
Romeo, Alpha India. “Cellphone.” Photograph. flickr.com. Yahoo! Southeast Asia Pte. Ltd., 9 April 2011. Web. 13 July 2011.
| |||
Getting a diploma from a university abroad without actually attending classes there is very common nowadays. An online course is all you need, and you get a degree even in the confines of your home or workplace.
| |||
