Getting Started with Janine Lim

Here are all the notes from Janine’s breakout session today. I will add more notes and hyperlinks. Add comments to continue the conversation.

What are the challenges?

Teacher interest (some nervous, some gung ho, some see as extra time)
We can’t afford it!
Teacher comfort (being on camera)
Trying to find content that fits teachers’ curriculum. Find really cool things, but don’t align
Regular classroom teacher scheduling trying to get unit every where.
As a content provider, how to get students to get them to interact.
How do we maintain quality of the connections?
Problems with bandwidth
Needs to be really good because students go home to high def and must be fantastic!

No Content Available

What are the solutions?

123VC: Jazzing Up Your Curriculum with Videoconferencing
Students blogging with provider
Be flexible and tie it to what you are already doing: Teacher forgot Read Around the Planet date and teacher used science fair projects to share.
Brown bag lunches, town hall meetings
Some buildings have two full time teachers who share scheduling, get equipment as close to you as possible, and have a fixed room if possible. Teach teachers how to sign up for themselves.
Use lead teachers of grade levels to be champions with you.
Use the remote, set a preset and then that person moves the camera to another place and sets another preset.
Types of interactions: (Q and A, hands-on materials, assignment to work on, student presentations, debates, students take on different roles, kinesthetic, pop-quiz, think-pair-share,
Middle school does not want anything phony.
Andy Campbell starts with document camera. Can you hear me? Can you see me?
Finding content aligned to state standards: Here is Janine’s site with Michigan GLCE.
NOTE: need to add Angela Conrad’s VBrick stuff.

How to fund videoconference equipment:

Sources of funding for videoconference content:

Charge regular field trip fee
Tandberg Connections Program
Polycom Special Events
PTA/PTO
Bake Sale
Uses the principal’s conference fund
Evening presentation to PTA and parents could ask questions and then gave some money to fund content.
Use the school videoconference equipment and charge businesses to use them.
The list from Janine’s blog
Use the money for technology software to purchase videoconference content

Scheduling Solutions:

Shared online database used by Janine and her schools
Renovo software used by us
Middle school: each class will have a videoconference experience
Use the model where the teachers tell you when and what they want and then find partners for them.
Example: Clifton elementary with Landmark Challenge
Paul Hieronymus Test Sites