What's up with Skype?

Earlier this week in my Contemporary Canadian Short Story class, my classmates and I had the opportunity to Skype with one of the authors whose text appears on the course syllabus. This was the first time in my university and academic career that a professor used Skype, instead of typical YouTube videos, to enhance our understanding and learning with a visual and an interactive medium. It was a very unique and memorable experience and it encouraged me to reflect on the use of such technology in a more twenty-first century classroom and evaluate the effectiveness of this learning strategy.

An important consideration is that activities like this are not always possible. Some professors do not have the resources available to them or, despite their best efforts, cannot convince or find an ideal time for relevant speakers to address their class. Nonetheless, Skype makes this easier on both parties. It can prevent travel and cut down on other problems that are associated with distance and overall it can be very convenient for willing participants. This is definitely a benefit to technology.

Less personal connections can be made via Skype or other forms of video interaction. This may benefit some students as they may feel more comfortable asking questions and feel less intimidated by the virtual presence of an informed speaker, thus allowing them to get more involved. On the other hand, some students may feel or be less engaged.

One of the ongoing debates about school is approximately what time students are most ready to learn and for how long students are able to maintain their concentration. My Contemporary Canadian Short Story class begins at 8 am and is three hours long. I have no trouble admitting that it can be difficult to stay focused in that class, not because of the content, but because my brain is not fully ready to function at such an early hour, even though it is expected to be. The Skype conversation provided us with a break from our usual routine. I noticed that it also helped my level of concentration in the morning and during a rather long class because it provided us with something different. It disrupted our usual process, which consists of listening to a group deliver a presentation and have a predictable discussion afterwards, in a positive way. 

We were not required to take notes and there was no test afterwards. We were encouraged to just listen and respond. I noticed that my focus was much better without the added pressure of trying to write down verbatim notes. I monitored my own learning and wrote down points that particularly interested me. Therefore, this assessment as learning (AaL) strategy was successful in encouraging student autonomy.

There is a downfall, however, of relying on technology, such as Skype, in the classroom. We encountered internet connection issues and other technical difficulties, like making and answering the call and ensuring that the screen and the Skype video conversation was visible to all students in such a classroom setting that is clearly designed to just accommodate discussion. There were various delays that resulted in some class time being wasted. Being a class with older, upper year university students, these delays did not result in students being off task, but if it occurred in a secondary school setting this would be more of a problem. Getting students to stay on task and get back on track is a struggle that all teachers face and the unreliability of technology may make this even worse. Similarly, as identified in our course book, one of the reservations that teachers have in regards to implementing technology in the classroom is that students often have a better knowledge about technology than teachers do. This can result in a role reversal of the teacher and the student, which can be uncomfortable. My professor had to seek assistance from other students at times as she struggled to work the program. Again, in a university setting this was not much of a problem, but getting other students involved in such a way in a high school setting could be. If a teacher knows that he/she is less competent than their students when it comes to technology, this recognition may cause teachers to be more cautious when dealing with it or cause them to use technology more infrequently, thus eliminating these interactive ways to learn in the classroom. Personally, I found this Skype discussion very helpful and I know that other students did too, so it is somewhat of a shame that unfamiliarity on the part of a teacher with technology or a certain program may result in its use being avoided all together causing students to miss out on valuable opportunities.

Reflecting on the KDB framework and what is most important to Know, Do and Be, I would say that, in the context of this specific class, this activity required me to know the place that humour has in Canadian literature and the stereotypes that are associated with the genre, as well as the strategies that are necessary to break these conventions. The Do or the twenty-first century skills that I gained from this include critical thinking and question making, collaboration, investigation and interpretation. Finally, I learned to be informed, to be attentive and accepting and to be an active Canadian citizen by reflecting on past Canadian historical influences and modern views.

As a result, this Skype session may seem like an added bonus or a waste of classroom time, but in reality it covered all of the goals that my professor outlined for the course, provided us with a rare chance to hear feedback from another expert and opened our eyes to the idea that technology can be used in productive ways and is not just a distraction when it comes to education. I know that this experience will be something that I remember and appreciate at the end of the term and will not just be something that I forgot about because it blended into everything else that I learned over the course of the semester.

Source: http://shop.skype.com/i/images/shop-graphics/skype-ready-tv.jpg