because of their ability to capture both still images as well as HD digital video. In addition, I also purchased 8GB SDHC class 6 memory cards (essential for capturing HD video) and small Lowepro camera bags to protect the cameras.
I set up a class blog as a sub-section of our school’s website, which is run using WordPress MU (multiuser). Tis made it easy to share access with the class in South Africa and administer the content of the blog.
Unfortunately, problems started showing themselves almost immediately. Te first problem was the cost of shipping the cameras to South Africa ($140) and customs fees (around $100). Tis was not something I had adequately planned for, but it was taken care of aſter some scrambling.
Sadly, the second problem surfaced almost immediately aſterward. Te principal at Mr. Soga’s school decided that the cameras were valuable and should be kept locked up, only allowing the classroom one camera to use and keeping the other 2 locked away. Tis was incredibly frustrating, and put a huge damper on the enthusiasm for the project, wasting time as I attempted to mediate an issue thousands of miles away at a school I wasn’t employed by!
Regardless of this major hurdle, we got started with the project as best we could, starting with putting up images from the participating classes at Honey Creek. Te students were excited to see their class photos on a website, and it was a good way to start learning about the technology we were using. Students added comments to the pictures on our blog, and eagerly anticipated seeing the first pictures from South Africa.
find out the distances between our city & theirs, and looked up information about the Xhosa language on Wikipedia. My students were truly engaged and excited by this!
Future Plans Te year ended with the students at both school having been given a taste of how this collaboration could work, but without getting to really dive into it to the depth that we had initially planned. Tis was frustrating, but it was quite a learning experience. Allow me to offer some cautions and encouragement for anyone considering this kind of thing.
First, carefully plot out all of the costs, including equipment, shipping, and fees. I was totally unprepared for the high shipping and customs costs, and it put a hold on the project as I scrambled to solve this problem. Second, work out a very carefully worded proposal to the international teacher you want to work with, and be sure the administration of the school is also on board with the idea! Tis could have saved me months of headache as we struggled to convince the South African principal to allow access to the other 2 cameras for the project. Finally, carefully consider how much work you will need to do to facilitate on your end, including communication, blogging, and coordination. Tis can really add up, and needs to be thought through.
Mncedisi Soga, Siyazakha Junior Secondary School, Cape Town, South Africa
To end on a positive note, this summer Sharon Peters, Mncedisi Soga and the South African principal were able to sit down and work out an agreement for the classes to use all three cameras for the upcoming
school year as intended, so I have high hopes to push this exchange to its full potential in the upcoming school year!
Aſter several months, we finally got some photos from South Africa uploaded to the class blog! My initial idea was to have Mr. Soga create blog posts directly, but this proved difficult due to his unfamiliarity with the WordPress soſtware. I ended up having him send photos directly to me, and I added them to our blog.
Te photos prompted great discussions in our classroom at Honey Creek. We looked through them as a class, and our students posted comments to the class blog. One example comment was “I was wondering if you or your students speak a different language”. In reply, one of the South African student replied, “We speak Xhosa, English and all the other African Languages in South Africa.” Exchanges like this sparked our students’ curiosity, which opened opportunities for learning. For example, we used Google Earth to
MACULJOURNAL |
Links Our Class Blog
honeycreekschool.org/collaboration/
Sharon Peters’ blog post on Te Infinite Tinking Machine
blog.infinitethinking.org/2009/06/teachers-without-borders-off-to- africa.html
Teachers without Borders Canada
www.twbcanada.org/
Bill Van Loo is the Technology Specialist/Teacher at Honey Creek Community School, a K-8 public charter school in Ann Arbor. He teaches technology education as well as maintaining the school’s IT and technology assets. Reach him at
bvanloo@hc.wash.k12.mi.us
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