Workshop: Using Skype in the Classroom By: Cristina Vaughn & Alex Melillo

What is Skype? Skype is software that enables the world's conversations. Millions of individuals and businesses use Skype to make free video and voice calls, send instant messages and share files with other Skype users. Everyday, people also use Skype to make low-cost calls to landlines and mobiles.

Background information Skype was founded in 2003. It’s based in Luxembourg, with offices in Europe, the US and Asia. It’s owned by an investor group led by Silver Lake and which includes eBay Inc, etc. Responsible for 8% of global international calling minutes, and with its users making 3.1 billion minutes of calls to landlines and mobiles in the third quarter of 2009, Skype is a leading global internet communications company. And of course, Skype-to- Skype voice and video calls are completely free. In the third quarter of 2009, Skype users made 27.7 billion minutes of Skype-to-Skype calls, and over a third of these were video calls.

Activity: Skype could be used in several different and diverse ways in the classroom. Your job is to come up with 5 different ways that you could use it in your classroom, but there’s a catch! You must use the letters of “skype” to come up with your ideas. For example: S…. K…. Y…. P…parent teacher conference with parents that are very busy. E….

Here are some other ways to use Skype in the classroom: Guest lecture or interviews (bringing a different perspective in on a topic). Talk to the producer of a film or chat with the author of a book. Field trips or pen pals. Study foreign languages by talking to someone that is a native speaker. Teachers, librarians, and tutors can offer after school help. Helping a classmate join the classroom from home if they aren’t able to be there. Present a performance or share student work.

Manheim Central Students Use Technology to Expand Classroom

Benefits of Skype: Allows group chats Emoticons Storing chat history Offline messaging Editing of previous messages The features are familiar to instant message users You can call pretty much anywhere in the world If you feel uncomfortable being on video, you can create an avatar that will show up instead of your face.

How do I sign up for Skype? Start by going to www.skype.com At the top of the screen there is a download option. (As we said before, the program is completely free! ) Click on green download tab and follow the steps to download the program on your computer. In the process you must create a user name and password. It doesn’t take very long at all!

Homework Assignment: 1) Sign up for a Skype account. Your username could be your fisher email (so we can find you on there). If you use your real (full) name in the information, people can search for you and chat so it might be beneficial to do so. 2) Find Alex Melillo and Cristina Vaughn on Skype and add them as a contact so you could talk in the future. 3) Take a lesson plan that you have already created and come up with an extension that involves using Skype. Explain exactly what you would do, who you would “Skype” with, and how it would enhance the lesson.

Are their any questions or final comments? Thank you for your time! Are their any questions or final comments?