What is Skype? 

 

   

     

 

Definition of: Skype

An Internet telephone and videophone service from Skype Limited, Luxembourg (www.skype.com). Being software based calls, calls from Skype subscribers originate from their computers, and all computer-to-computer calls between subscribers are free, including video. 

 

Explosive Growth

Introduced in July 2004, within a year, more than a hundred million people downloaded the software. According to pcmag.com by the fall of 2005, Skype claimed 40 million active users and was acquired by eBay for $2.6 billion. By late 2008, an average of 10 million users were using Skype simultaneously.

 

The Wall Street Journal reported on April 15, 2009 that Ebay Inc. plans to sell Skype citing that it was a “poor fit with the rest of the company.” Ebay Executive John Donahue asserts that shedding the VoIP company would allow Skype to “continue its growth and compete effectively.”

 

Why use Skype in education?

Take a 1:39 seconds to open your mind.  

 

 

The proliferation of high speed internet access provides educators with numerous avenues with which to incorporate innovative teaching strategies. Email, podcasts, wikis, and blogs are all helpful tools that allow both educators and students to communicate and collaborate. Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) is another tool available. Skype is one of the most popular VoIP tools. One reason for the popularity of Skype is:

 

 

 

The Bottom Line

 

The cost effective implementation of Skype is one of its most beneficial features.

Schools are always concerned with budget. The necessary Skype software ( www.skype.com) can be downloaded for free. Many laptops have built in webcams.

If a camera needs to be purchased, they are available for less as $25.00.

 

 

Potential in the classroom

 

 

Skype presents the opportunities for both the educator and the student.

 

As educators, guest speakers from around the globe can be brought into the classroom. Experts from a particular field can be made available for class discussion. A teacher on maternity or disability leave can stay in contact with the class. I’m currently a long term substitute for a teacher on maternity leave. The class will meet her new baby via Skype. 

 

For students, the chance to learn from a specific topic expert is available. The opportunity to interact with students in another class, district, state or country is possible. A sick student could participate from home. I had a class partner who was supposed to present a project with me but she was called out of town. She was able to fulfill her part of the presentation via Skype. It was my first presentation with a partner on laptop but it probably won’t be my last.

 

Who loves Skype?

 

 

• Language Teachers – students can converse with native speakers
• Social Studies Teacher – students can interact with other cultures
• Science Teachers – guest scientists can demonstrate lab experiments
• Innovative Teachers – fighting the talk and chalk
• Students – appreciate technology in school not just at home

 

 

 

A study comparing the uses of Blackboard with Skype found that students felt the latter technology to be more beneficial in increasing their awareness

of the topic, making it less abstract (Pan & Sullivan, 2005). The interactive voice technology was considered key as opposed to text only in a chat format.

 

There is even a music teacher who has set up lessons via Skype. He mentions the technology as being "Star Trek style" and comments on how the future

horizons have quickly become the past (Litterst, 2007).

 

 

 

Here is another Skype wiki

http://technologypd.pbworks.com/Skype+in+Education 

 

 

7 things you should know about Skype

http://www.educause.edu/ELI/7ThingsYouShouldKnowAboutSkype/162373 

 

 

 

Here is a tutorial on how to use Skype in your classroom

http://edtechteacher.org/skypetutorial.html 

 

 

 

Language teachers can turn a computer lab into a language lab

http://worldclassschools.00politics.com/skype.html 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

References

 

Fowler, Geoffrey. A. (2009, April 15). The Wall Street Journal, p.B1, B5.

 

Encyclopedia at pcmag.com (2009) Retrieved May 5, 2009 fromhttp://www.pcmag.com/encyclopedia

 

Hogan, M. (2006). Skype's the Limit. Entrepreneur v. 34 no. 1, p. 44.

 

Litterst, G. (2007). Looking back to the future: Examining how we communicate. The American Music Teacher v. 56 no. 5, p. 72-73.

 

Pan, C., & Sullivan, M. (2005). Promoting synchronous interaction in an eLearning environment. T.H.E. Journal v. 33 no. 2, p. 27-8, 30.

 

Seven things you should know about Skype (2007, December 5) Retrieved May 5, 2009 from http://www.educause.edu/ELI/7ThingsYouShouldKnowAboutSkype/162373

 

Skype in education (2009) Retrieved May 5, 2009 from http://technologypd.pbworks.com/Skype+in+Education

 

Skype video tutotrial (2008) Retrieved May 5, 2009 from http://edtechteacher.org/skypetutorial.html

 

World Class Schools Foreign Language Skype Project, Retrieved May 7, 2009 from http://worldclassschools.00politics.com/skype.html