基于母语和视频会议促进学生发展的国际远程学习交流研究——中日两大学间2008年度实践报告

中日两大学利用简易视频会议装置,实现了基于母语的国际交流。为了深化研究,2008年,完善原有系统,添加了发表和评价活动。经过七次交流,两国学生的多种能力和意识都显著提高。由此认为,即便是用母语和简易视频会议装置与外国学生交流,也能提高相关能力和意识,并促进学生的毕业论文研究。     

Videoconferencing in the Classroom

Summary

This article presents a case study of a pilot program implemented with San Franciscan and Taiwanese fourth graders. The project utilized videoconferencing technology to create a collaborative cultural exchange in which students from both cities saw an art exhibit, The Splendors of Imperial China, and participated in a dialogue addressing the content of the exhibit, as well as their own cultural backgrounds. The program proved to be a great success based on the students' improved ability, increased knowledge, and changed attitudes toward technology in learning. Videoconferencing has been shown to have great success in classroom collaborations such as this one in educational institutions around the world.     

Teacher candidate reflection: Benefits of using a synchronous computer-mediated communication-based virtual exchange

Fifteen participants, registered for a teaching program at a university in the United States, met with beginner and intermediate learners in their content area during a 4-week virtual exchange, via videoconferencing. These Teaching of English to Speakers of Other Languages (TESOL) teacher candidates: 1) explored language produced by learners while interacting with course content and 2) developed their reflective practices by watching their video recorded sessions. Analysis of written reflections and analysis of exchanges revealed that reflecting on a virtual exchange allowed TESOL teacher candidates to bridge theory into practice.     

Creating the Global Graduate: A Cross‐Cultural Videoconferencing Case Study

Business people in multinational environments must deal with a variety of situational barriers and cultural differences, such as time zones, languages, and common practice differences. Learning to accommodate these barriers and differences effectively often takes years of practice. Students who experience some of these barriers and become aware of some of the cultural differences while still in school have the advantage of beginning their practice early. Classroom to classroom videoconferencing (VC) provides an excellent discovery, or active, learning opportunity for business students to interact with, and learn more about, other's cultural similarities and differences. This article presents a case study that describes the videoconferencing interactions experienced by Japanese and U.S. undergraduate business students conducted in three successive years with three different sets of students on each side. In each year, students report learning a great deal about each other's cultures through the discovery learning process; at the same time, faculty learned that some types of discussion vehicles work better than others. Implications for how best to provide a cross‐cultural experience via videoconferencing for students who will soon be in the international workforce are discussed.     

Students' Reactions to the Introduction of Videoconferencing for Classroom Instruction

This study examined how students who had no prior experience with videoconferencing would react to the use of videoconferencing as an instructional medium. Students enrolled in seven different courses completed a questionnaire at the beginning of the semester and again at the end of the semester. Students at the origination and remote sites did not differ in their reactions toward videoconferencing but there was a significant difference for gender. Women reacted less favorably to videoconferencing. Compared to the beginning of the semester, students reported significantly less positive attitudes toward taking a course through videoconferencing at the end of the semester. There were no significant differences in students' attitudes toward videoconferencing across courses at the beginning of the semester but there were significant differences across the courses at the end of the semester. The results suggest the need for better preparation for both students and instructors.     

Multi-point e-conferencing with initial teacher training students in England: Pitfalls and potential

This article reports on attempts to initiate multi-point e-conferencing between English teacher education students on school placements, their host teachers and their university tutors. A sociocultural perspective is adopted in analysing the project, using the metaphor of a ‘professional knowledge landscape’ [Clandinin, D. J., & Connelly, F. M. (1995). Teachers’ professional knowledge landscapes. New York: Teachers College Press] to make sense of participants’ experiences. Findings suggest that considerable difficulties exist not just in terms of technical challenges, but also in terms of ethics, values, complexity and communications in schools. A similar project undertaken in Singapore [Sharpe, L., Hu, C., Crawford, L., Gopinathan, S., Khine, M. S., Moo, S. N., et al. (2003). Enhancing multi-point desktop video conferencing (MDVC) with lesson video clips: Recent developments in pre-service teaching practice in Singapore. Teaching and Teacher Education, 19(5), 529–541] is used to highlight the contextual nature of these challenges. The paper concludes that the promotion of new technologies as a key part of current education planning in the UK is questionable with insufficient attention being given to the sociocultural implications of such change. Implications are drawn for universities, schools and for future policy development.     

The specific skills required of teachers who deliver K–12 distance education courses by synchronous videoconference: implications for training and professional development

ABSTRACT

The purpose of this research is to identify the specific skills required of videoconference teachers who teach K–12 distance education courses. Many schools and educational districts worldwide are using videoconference technology to deliver courses to students as an economic solution when they cannot afford specialised teachers at remote locations. However, teachers are rarely trained to use this instructional technology and must therefore translate their experience in face-to-face and/or online teaching to this alternative medium. The collective case study used observations and interviews of eight teachers across five schools to identify the specific skills required to teach in a way that they perceived as successful in a videoconference class. It was found that teachers are largely under-prepared with strategies to project presence, develop relationships, foster interaction, manage the course and teach content across a distance when the screen is the main tool of connection. The authors offer a path to improvement that involves supporting teacher action research, creating communities of inquiry and developing teaching quality standards specific to videoconference.     

Internet 2 Commons: a collaborative environment

Partnerships among the educational community provide the substance and catalyst for future generations of teachers and students. The Internet 2 Commons provides a collaboration framework for the advancement of research and education. This effort incorporates technological advancements in support of research and pedagogical activities. Available to Internet 2 members are advanced networking and application services, which include collaborative data services and videoconferencing.