RSA 4: Skype in the Classroom

RSA 4: Skype in the Classroom

http://www.wtvi.com/teks/05_06_articles/skype-in-the-classroom.html

            Online learning communities are a great place for building group collaboration. Students learn to work together and depend on one another to reach their learning goals and to elevate their learning experiences (Palloff & Pratt, 2007). One example of this is learning through the Internet because it allows groups of people to connect from all over the world and it provides a more thorough understanding of the content they are studying. Teacher can assign their students to search the Internet for articles about the content and use that knowledge in assignments. Instructors can also create collaborative connections with others learning the same topic in other universities around the world. Classes could communicate with other instructors, specialists, and students in the same field. This type of collaborative online learning provides limitless possibilities and “can greatly enhance the educational experience” (Palloff & Pratt, 2007).

            “Internet connectivity in educational settings provides opportunities for interactive exchange and collaboration between students living on other sides of town or the other side of the planet, states Wesley Fryer, author of Skype in the Classroom (2005). Skype is free software on the Intranet that allows real-time discussions through high-quality audio calls to others on Skype (Fryer, 2005). This authentic learning engages students in collaborative group work by talking with others through video. Skype is an educational and motivational tool that expands outside of traditional education settings. As education is evolving so is the way students learn. Skype is an active way to gain information from the Internet through group collaboration that will be converted into knowledge (Fryer, 2005).

            Group collaboration with online communities promotes interdependence, which is critical for online learning. Instructors who do not promote collaborative learning in online communities create an environment where there is little participation and less engagement in learning (Palloff & Pratt, 2007). Skype is a technology tool that motivates students to communicate with authentic learning opportunities. Students can conference online with communities globally. This is a extraordinary teaching tool that expands student learning and knowledge though a group environment.

References

Fryer, Wesley A. (2005). Skype in the Classroom. Retrieved from

            http://www.wtvi.com/teks/05_06_articles/skype-in-the-classroom.html.

Palloff, R., & Pratt, K. (2007). Building Online Learning Communities: Effective

            strategies for the virtual classroom, (2^nd ed.). San Francisco: Jossey-Bass. ISBN:

978-0-7879-8825-8.