What’s a webinar?

franblo — Sun, 29 Mar 2009 20:41:57 +0000

You’ve heard of seminars, and you’ve heard of the World Wide Web. A webinar puts them together.

Webinars have become a very popular way of providing professional development because:

all you need is a computer with high speed internet access (we all have high speed access at school, and many have this at home)
the format provides a way to provide sound, so you can hear the speakers, and visuals, so you can see short videos, see PowerPoint slides, see a white board as people write on it.
the format often provides a way to interact with both the speakers and the others in the audience, called chat (more about this below). This provides a way to ask questions, make comments, share information, and can be the most valuable part of the experience.
written materials can be shared by the speakers to all the participants.
you can participate in the webinar as it happens, or watch it later at a more convenient time (called an archived webinar)

To participate in a webinar, often you’ll receive an email inviting you to participate, say, from your professional organization. (You may have to pay, and they’ll tell you how to do that.) Then you’ll be sent an email that includes a link to click on that will take you to the start of the webinar. If you’ve never attended a webinar before, it’s good to click on any “test your computer” link to make sure you already have installed on your computer any extra software that might be needed (usually so you can view videos the presenters might want to show); if you don’t have the needed (free) software, they’ll provide you with a way to download it.

On the day of the webinar, you click on the given link to enter the webinar. Since it takes a few minutes for all the software to load, it’s a good idea to do this at least 10 minutes before the webinar starts. The presenters are usually already there, and as you’ll see below, you can send them questions if you are having “technical difficulties.”

Eventually, you’ll see a screen that looks something like the one above. It has tools up at the top left (which the presenters will explain to you, if you need to use them). It has a list of attendees below that, on the left.

Below is a sample of the chat window, which we’ll come back to in a minute.

The main presentation is in the big rectangle to the right. This is where you’ll see PowerPoint slides, polls of participants, a whiteboard, and so on. Sometimes there will also be a video, which usually plays in a separate window. This main presentation window is entirely controlled by the presenters.

Back to the chat window (sample below, right). This is where you can read written conversations among the presenters and participants during the webinar. (If you watch an archived webinar, you can read and scroll through all the comments, but you can’t particpate in them) Within the chat window are the top window, which shows the conversation as it happens, and the bottom window, where you can add your words to the conversation. To participate in the conversation or ask questions, just click on the blank bottom window, type your message, and press Send. Your message (which automatically includes the name you gave when you signed into the webinar) will then show as part of the “conversation” in the chat window.

Two great things here: 1) you can scroll up and down through the chat window, which is helpful when the conversation gets animated, and 2) you can save the entire chat for later, which can be very helpful if people were sharing ideas and resources. In Elluminate (the usual forum for Webinars in education), click on File, Save, Chat conversation, then navigate to where you to to save the chat document to and click Enter Save it someplace you can find it. I usually save to my desktop because I can see it there, and won’t forget it.

A few webinars provide for you to ask questions via audio. They’ll let you know during the webinar if this is an option. You’ll need a microphone on your computer in order to do this. I prefer the chat window just because there are fewer “technical difficulties.”

Some caveats. Webinars use up a lot of computer resources, so it’s best to have recently restarted your computer, so your computer’s memory is clear. Close out of any programs you won’t need while you’re watching, so your computer resources are available to the webinar. Don’t close any windows that are opened once you click on the link to the webinar – you might not think they are important, but some are vital, and their loss will kick you out of the webinar and you’ll have to start over again.

Are webinars all free? No, mostly they cost money, but PBS offers some free (see earlier email), as does Education Week. Your professional organization may already provide webinars. I’ll be sending out a separate email just about sources for professional development, which should point you in the right direction.

As always, if you have questions, all you have to do is ask.

Fran Lo, room 224, available for extra help after school on Mondays and most other days

Webinars, professional development, for all teachers

franblo — Wed, 25 Mar 2009 18:12:10 +0000

The following are upcoming Webinars (web + seminar) provided to teachers free through PBS. (And if you can’t attend the webinar, which you can do in your bunny slippers at home, you can view the archived webinar at a later date.)

Two recent webinars have been about changing views of history and race, and about using Folger Shakespeare Library resouces to enrich the teaching of Shakespeare.

Upcoming webinars include the following. If you becoming a member of PBS Teachers at http://www.pbs.org/teachers/connect/create-profile/ you will receive emails about all forthcoming webinars. There are many other resources at www.pbs.org/teachers as well.

Lo and Behold » webinar

What’s a webinar?

Webinars, professional development, for all teachers

April 7

Using 21st Century Resources to Enhance Math Teaching & Learning

Cyberchase

May 4

Diving into the Digital World of Marine Science

Jean-Michel Cousteau: Ocean Adventures

June

Summertime and My Personal Learning Network

Bob Sprankle, Cheryl Oakes, and Alice Barr