Key Points in Planning
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These tips will help ensure succesful videconferencing
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Whether you videoconference primarily with Content Providers, other schools, for meetings, or for professional development, there are key points to keep in mind to help ensure that your connections are successful. Listed below are several tips to remember when planning a videoconference with another school or Content Provider.
- Schedule a test connection well ahead of your actual videoconference to troubleshoot any audio or video problems.
- Have technical support available on the day of your test and also during your videoconference.
- Connect early on the day of the videoconference. We suggest connecting about 15 minutes ahead which gives you an opportunity to troubleshoot and correct any problems, should they exist.
- Educate the audience at both sites with proper "videoconference etiquette." Make certain that everyone knows they can be seen and heard.
- Get acquainted with your MUTE button. Nothing is more distracting than a tapping pencil or shuffling paper! In a multipoint conference, all sites should mute whenever their participants are not speaking or presenting.
- Have "Plan B" ready. Let’s face it - we all have those days when nothing goes right. If you experience technical problems, have a backup plan in place so you don’t waste the time of your audience.
Launching an IVC Initiative
One way to create an awareness of interactive videoconferencing (IVC) technology is to engage people in an actual videoconferencing event. Many content providers offer free awareness sessions targeting teachers and staff which showcase the opportunties they offer. These are a wonderful introduction to the world of IVC.
Another approach is to align programming to the standards being taught at each grade level and/or discipline and offer such a program for each classroom. This broader aproach, while extremely effective, is also more costly. To bring down these intial costs, why not start with free programming? Numerous content providers offer programming free of charge--some specifically for students and others which address professional development for teachers. Thus, you have used your budget wisely and provided an opportunity for an inital videoconferencing experience to each and every classroom.
Be sure to check out the following free offerings.
Programs for Students
- Arizona Memorial Museum Association
- Eli Lilly and Company
- International Studies In Schools
- IUPUI School of Science
- Lake County Solid Waste Management District
- Lee Richardson Zoo
- Library of Congress
- NASA's Digital Learning Network
- Vanderbilt Center for Science Outreach
Programs for Educators
For further details on the programs offered by each of these providers, go to http://www.cilc.org/search_program.aspx. Choose a provider from the "Content Provider Name" pull down menu and click the Search button.
Arizona Memorial Museum Association
http://www.arizonamemorial.org/
The Arizona Memorial Museum Association (AMMA) is a nonprofit organization formed to give the public an opportunity to provide ongoing support for the USS ARIZONA Memorial. Founded in 1979, AMMA makes interpretive and educational materials available to park visitors and supports the research, interpretation, and conservation programs of the National Park Service.
Every year, 1.5 million visitors from all over the world travel to Pearl Harbor and the USS ARIZONA Memorial. They come to honor the men and women who gave their lives on the day that will live forever in infamy, December 7, 1941. They also come to learn the history of the attack on Pearl Harbor and the subsequent United States involvement in World War II.
Not everyone can visit the memorial personally. But with Witness to History videoconferencing programs: Pearl Harbor Survivor series, The Interpretive Ranger series and Inside the Vault: The Curator series, students worldwide can learn about the events surrounding December 7, 1941.
The Witness to History program is sponsored by the National Park Service and the U.S. Navy/Marine Learning Network. The three Witness to History Series are funded by the Arizona Memorial Museum Association.
http://www.arizonamemorial.org/education/education-services-vc.html
Eli Lilly and Company
Eli Lilly and Company, renowned as a company that creates and delivers innovative medicines, creates added value for educators by providing high-quality educational programs offered free of charge. Elementary through high school students can benefit greatly from the generosity of Lilly and its’ diverse programs. Teachers can select from numerous science-based programs such as Brainlink: Brain Comparisons. A selection available to them from the communications area is Behind the Scenes at BTV - Broadcasting & Communications. All program guides include both national and state standards, designed to make it easy to align with curriculum objectives.
International Studies In Schools
http://www.indiana.edu/~global/isis.htm
International Studies In Schools, also known as ISIS, provides a fantastic alternative to the traditional classroom guest speaker. Since 1995, ISIS has been providing innovative, free video distance-learning programs which connect Indiana University (IU) international students, scholars, and specialists with K-12 schools and community groups nationwide.
Specific programs are tailored to classroom needs. The process originates with teachers contacting ISIS Program Coordinators to discuss a specific content area or topic they are studying in their classroom. ISIS coordinators work directly with the various world resource centers on campus to identify quality presenters and design program content based on curriculum standards under the guidance of the requesting teacher. Specific programs for teachers or community leaders have included "International Security Issues in the 21st Century" and "The Daily Life and Culture of South Korea."
Topical series, with which any audience can choose to connect, include conversations with returned Peace Corps volunteers, international career days, daily life in specific countries, and two award-winning series entitled International Education Week 2000: Interactive Series for Indiana and Face to Face with the World, an activity of the Bridges to the World: Youth Trade Fair.
IUPUI School of Science
http://www.science.iupui.edu/science/default.shtm
The School of Science at IUPUI offers programs leading to bachelor’s, master’s, and doctoral degree in Biology, Chemistry, Computer and Information Science, Geology, Mathematical Sciences, Physics, and Psychology. Secondary school teaching programs in math and science are also degree programs provided by the School of Science.
Middle and high school students may enjoy interacting with a scientist as they explore "Careers in Science," a program that helps kids understand the requirements for and opportunities available in life science, math and computer science, environmental science, physical or psychological sciences. Students can engage in a discussion about careers and how to prepare through educational opportunities in high school and college.
Another program designed by scientists whose research has led to the discovery of the Mastodon in southern Indiana is "Elephant Ancestors in Indiana - Can You Dig It?" This program is sure to keep elementary through high school kids fascinated as they catch an exciting glimpse of Indiana paleontology and historic perspectives on climate changes in the region. Participants learn about the earth, changes of the earth surface, and animals that lived in the region. Students will likely develop an appreciation for the land and geographic transformation that shaped the earth.
Jason Foundation - Suicide Prevention Programs
http://www.jasonfoundation.com/
The Jason Foundation provides specialized training in the area of youth suicide prevention and awareness for educators. "Youth Suicide Prevention Seminar for Educators" is a program specifically designed for teachers, counselors, principals, and other who work with youth. This program promotes awareness and prevention through detailed information and discussion. Information pertinent to the teacher-student relationship is explored as well as resources available to help in the prevention of youth suicide.
Lake County Solid Waste Management District
The Lake County Solid Waste Management District is an award- winning government entity created to develop a plan for the managment of solid waste in Lake County, Indiana. They offer a wide variety of free, fun, and informative environmentally-based programs to elementary through high school students. For teachers, they provide free professional development to explore what recycling programs are available for schools, and to learn what’s new in free fieldtrips at the Enviroroom, Douglas Center, and the Hammond Center.
Lake County’s programs contribute to kids’ knowledge about the environment, ecology, and waste recycling in a lively, interactive format. Further, programs have consistently received positive educator reviews! Check out these interesting programs—all aligned with national and state standards.
- Environmentally Happily Ever After
- Household Hazardous Waste Aghhhh!!!
- SCALES & TALES: Environmental Fun with Measuring
- Squirmy Worms
- Talkin’ Trash
- Environmental Careers
- Enviroholidays
- Lake County Solid Waste Issues
Lee Richardson Zoo
http://www.garden-city.org/zoo/
The mission of the Lee Richardson Zoo's Education Department—in Garden, City, Kansas—is to instill in the community an appreciation of nature, and concern for the natural world. The Zoo's Distance Learning Studio offers a multitude of environmental programs to students all over the nation. Programs are free of charge and always include a live animal. Additionally students receive supplies that they will use during the program to facilitate their learning. Program offerings are geared toward elementary through high school students and include such interesting and diverse program titles as the following:
- 3-2-1-Lift Off!
- Animal Adaptations
- Animals of the Prairie
- Awesome Amphibians
- Protection from the Predators
- Snakes, Lizards, and Alligators-Oh My!
- Sophisticated Mammals
- Spineless Animals
- The Lions of the Bird World
Library of Congress
The Library of Congress is the largest library in the world, with over 115 million books, manuscripts, sound recordings, films, photographs, and maps. Over 10 million rare and unique primary sources are on its web site. For teachers, they provide many free programs specifically designed to provide educators with the resources and evaluative skills needed to use primary sources in the classroom.
Programs provide valuable information specific to how to use the Library of Congress materials to full advantage in the classroom. Programs include:
- Sleuthing with Maps
- The Internet - Fact or Fiction - Website Evaluation Strategies
- The Spy Map and General Washington (also available for students)
- Treasure Hunting
- Make It and Take It
- "To light us to freedom, and glory again!": Civil War Poetry With a Purpose
NASA's Digital Learning Network
The Digital Learning Network opens virtual doors for remote instruction and interaction between NASA experts and students. Primarily a video teleconference-based project, the DLN provides national standards-based educational modules relating to space exploration.
"A Place In Space," a program suitable for grades 4 - 12, enables students to learn about the dreams and efforts by humans to build a presence off our planet and into space. The program helps students envision and design the next generation of space stations in their classroom and provides them the opportunity to present their ideas to NASA’s Digital Learning Network staff.
Vanderbilt Center for Science Outreach
http://www.vanderbilt.edu/cso/vcsched.php
The Vanderbilt Center for Science Outreach is dedicated to the innovative use of technology to create vibrant learning partnerships between Vanderbilt and K-12 schools nationwide. Each year they offer a variety of free programs which connect scientists to the classroom.
Program topics have included:
- Freaky Friday: Blood & Guts - view real human organs with a physiologist
- Give a Hoot - Meet a barred owl and her wildlife rehabilitator
- Ethics in Genetic Testing - discuss the "right and wrong" with genetic counselors
- Human Robotics - a virtual lab tour complete with "thinking" robots
- Theory of Relativity - learn from a physics professor/Albert Einstein impersonator
- Healthy Living series - monthly visit with medical students concerning health topics
- NIEHS topic series - cutting-edge research straight from Vanderbilt’s National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences
- VIA Dyer series - shoot for the stars with our astronomers live from Dyer Observatory
- Snacks4theBrain podcast - Download any or all of our brief (10 minutes or less) audio "shows" to learn more about videoconferencing and everything else that goes on Center for Science Outreach.
For further details on the programs offered by each of these providers, go to http://www.cilc.org/search_program.aspx. Choose a provider from the "Content Provider Name" pull down menu and click the Search button.