The Wonders of Web Conferencing

Tonight I participated in my first web conference! I must say, it was a little nerve racking in the beginning. Since I had never participated in a web conference, I logged on a few minutes early and was told to wait for the host. I waited, waited, and "refreshed", but nothing happened. My technology nerves started to frazzle, so I logged out and re-entered the site only to see that it had me logged in already! Who knows, but once I was finally in, a new technology tool was at my finger tips. Although the sound and video were not working optimally, I could still see the limitless potential for web conferencing in the classroom. From students having a virtual guest, to classrooms transitioning from pen pals to web conference buddies, the options are exciting. Teachers will need to be comfortable with the technology first before they are willing to use it in their classrooms. I think that principals would benefit by modeling this technology with their faculty. Maybe it would be nice to have a faculty meeting from the coach in your living room? Maybe get together with another school to discuss similar problems? However we do it, leaders need to get their teachers comfortable with the latest technology so they are willing to use these 21st Century tools with their students.