July 7 fourth blog post

Today our focus was on video conferencing. I have used Elluminate numerous times because most of my courses at U Of C have been online. I have found it can be a really great way to interact with classmates and an easy way to disseminate information because of the functions such as webtour, application sharing and the whiteboard.  I have also used Elluminate as a means to collaborate with classmates on projects- particularly because my group members have lived in different cities. I found that of all the collaborative technologies I have tried - Elluminate is just about the easiest to use- because you can type, send files, visit the web, speak and listen to each other and even see one another on the webcam- synchronously. Part of my new job in the fall will be to provide PD for content area teachers on how to adapt their teaching to accomodate the ESL students in their courses. I could see potential for Elluminate to help facilitate small group sessions for these teachers.