Janine Lim janine.lim@berrienresa Blog: vcoutonalim

1. Inspiring Teachers' Use of Curriculum Videoconferencing: What Works Janine Lim janine.lim@berrienresa.org Blog: www.vcoutonalim.org Twitter: outonalimWeb: www.berrienresa.org/technology/vc

2. Research Background “Curriculum Videoconferencing” • Some equipment sits collecting dust. Why??

3. Issues & Problems • What do you think??

4. My Top Teachers • May 2008 • Twenty K-12 teachers • Berrien & Cass County • 6 to 12 videoconferences ’07-’08

5. If your principal or superintendent walked into your classroom during a videoconference, give five adjectives to describe what they would see happening.

7. Videoconferencing is like...

8. 5 Positive Things About VC

9. Middle school language arts • Students have an authentic audience, causing them to take greater care with their work. • Students learn to create valid questions through the ASK kit. • Students reflect upon what they learn and sometimes change their thinking or make connections to what they know. • Some of our challenging students’ behavior is so much better because they’re interested in what we’re doing. • When we connect to another part of the country or a foreign country, we open our students’ world to ideas they may not learn through a text book. Most of our students do not have opportunity to travel or see areas outside of our rural community and county.

10. 5 Negative Things About VC

11. How Did You Learn About VC?

12. Learning About VC • School coordinator helped them • find correlations to their standards • find a VC for them and help them sign up • help them see how the programs fit their curriculum • help them with VCs that can replace a lesson they currently teacher

13. Learning About VC • They need to see it: coordinator said: ““It seems a little daunting until you actually go through it and then you realize this was not too bad and in fact it was really awesome!”” • Two teachers VCing together • Arrange for teachers to peek into another teachers’ VC • Make sure your principal & supt see VCs in action

14. Sustaining Your Use of VC

15. Sustaining Use of VC • A key experience that motivates me to continue using videoconferencing is the fact that my students are able to communicate with other classrooms, authors, and educators around the world. -Wendy Zahrn, 4th grade, Sylvester Elementary, Berrien Springs • Connecting kids to experiences outside of our community without leaving the school! -Tami Miller, 2nd grade, Eagle Lake Elementary, Edwardsburg • The comments the students were making and the level of understanding they had was amazing. -Lacy Payne, 6th grade, F.C. Reed Middle School, Bridgman • The students enthusiasm! They love to VC. -Karen Ennesser, 7th grade science, Dowagiac Middle School, Dowagiac

16. Sustaining Use of VC • These are interactive field trips that we don’t even have to leave the building for. Students walk away with new knowledge and experiences. -Dori Hughes, 2nd grade, Eagle Lake Elementary, Edwardsburg • I LOVE videoconferencing! It gives my kids exposure to things we couldn’t otherwise do. It gives them practice in presenting & performing skills and is just so much fun! -Heidi Clark, 1st grade teacher, Three Oaks Elementary, River Valley

17. How Do You Find VCs? • Check websites • Ask my VC coordinator (librarian, teacher) • Look in ASK directory. • Emails from Janine • Workshops • I use some of the same ones each year because I know the expectations and the results. • I use the ones I have experienced. • There is a print out at the beginning of the year that I try to find things that go with my theme.

18. How do you select VCs? • Whatever is free! • I look for videoconferences that integrate with our learning. • Based on our GLCEs / curriculum. • Videoconferences that are at my students’ level.

19. How do you prepare? • Making sure they understand the content. • We vote on the type of presentation to give. The students work in groups. • I use the ASK kits or provider materials. • I expose my students to the information necessary for them to become fully engaged when viewing the decided VC. We discuss and then prepare questions. • I spend a class period providing background info or reinforcing prior learning. We then develop questions.

20. What Supports Are Critical?

21. Components of Our Program • Our online registration / scheduling • Supporting, training, sustaining VC coordinators • Providing resources, both print and web-based, to help teachers see how VCs match their curriculum • Offering free programs to our schools (ASK and collaborative projects) that are tightly matched to their curriculum • Offering mini-grants to help pay for programs • Increasing access to VC in every school • Assisting principals and tech coordinators in the districts with supporting VC

22. Areas to Improve • What do you want to change/improve in your VC program?

23. Questions? Janine Lim, janine.lim@berrienresa.org TWICE: www.twice.cc CAPspace: projects.twice.cc Berrien RESA DL: www.berrienresa.org/technology/vc/ Blog: vcoutonalim.org Wiki: collaborativeVCs.pbwiki.com Online Classes:Planning Interactive Curriculum Connections21st Century Communication Collaborations Supporting Teachers’ Use of Videoconferencingwww.berrienresa.org/technology/vc/professionaldevelopment/

24. Sustainability: Owston’s Model