My Personal Webinar Experience

I initially had trouble finding a Webinar that was being streamed at a time that worked for me, that had applicable content for my subject-matter, and that I didn’t have to pay for a subscription to view.  I finally I found edweb.net and signed up for Game-Based Learning which was aired from 4-5 pm on Mon, Dec. 2. 

The archived Webinar is located in the Gamed-Based Learning Community. 

If interested on content or comments, click on links below:

Link to Archived Pages of Webinar

Link to Comment

My Reflections:

Easy to sign up and easy to log on.  I was signed in about 20 minutes ahead of time, and thought it was great that a representative from the site came on 15 minutes early to say hi, do a sound check, welcome everyone.  She asked if anyone was new, and I chatted that I was, and was kind of excited to see her and hear her say, “hi Kristi, welcome”!  I noticed all the participants joining and saw people from all over the US as well as other countries and cities like Romania, Ecuador, and Rome.  I’ve often thought this, but suddenly the point was truly driven home, that this is the future of education.  I truly see traditional schools becoming more hybrids in our virtual world.  The session promptly began at 4 pm when Jeff from Hershey, PA introduced himself and began his session.  I liked how I could see him speaking and also see his computer screen.  He showed slides, videos, and charts.  It was also engaging to read the stream in chat area and to also participate.  The hour flew by. 

Pros/Strengths: 

I truly believe people can find a free Webinar on anything.  I was able to interact live via a chat room.  I was not connected via webcam or audio, but I actually found this as a plus because I could focus on the instructor and not what everyone else was doing.  Also, I felt comfortable taking notes during the process. At the end, two instructors came on to conduct Q & A addressing questions from the chat throughout the session.  I thought this was great.

Cons/Weaknesses: 

The content was not quite what I was expecting.  The show was literally using “Off-the-Shelf” games in the classroom, such as SKYRIM, Assassins Creed III, Bioshock Infinite, and World of Warcraft.  Being a High school History teacher, Jeff is able to incorporate this into his curriculum and justify it with Bloom’s Taxonomy and 21^st Century Learning Skills.  For example, Jeff has kids conduct population statistics in SKYRIM to see if the characters can sustain life with available food during the Mid Evil time period.  With Bioshock Infinite, students analyze Social Darwinism in the Futuristic society.  Students write essays about the impact and influence of race and gender in the game World of War Craft.   While this was very interesting to hear, there is NO WAY my school district would approve these games in my middle school classroom!  I thought the content would be how to create games to be used in the classroom.  Also, my previous pro is also a con regarding the fact that I, as a participant, could not be seen or heard.  While I liked that I was at a comfort level to take notes and could focus on the presenter, I also feel not being seen can takes away from accountability and participation.  For example, I caught myself thinking of my to-do list for the evening a few times! 

Incorporation in the Classroom as Attendee:

I like this type of webinar for my middle school students, if it was shorter.  The hour would not hold their attention, especially if they can wander off without being “caught” because there is no webcam on them.  This is a great way to add enrichment to my curriculum—allowing students to find a topic and further their knowledge.  I see many benefits for my Career Concepts class, such as connecting with businesses, entrepreneurs, and even learning concepts.  The format of my show, with only the instructor being seen, is great if I want the kids to pull information for further learning, especially since they can take notes at their discretion.  For students to collaborate ideas, however, I feel a 2-way web cam experience would be even better for them for accountability and interaction as they share ideas and hear others. I love how the entire webinar is archived for later viewing, as is the chat log and presentation slides.  This is great for students to refer to and as a teacher, I could log on and verify via the chat log if my students were active participants.  

Incorporation in the Classroom as Broadcaster:

Webinars would be a great way for the kids to share out what they are learning and connect with parents and local communities, which gave me the idea for my own classroom Webinar experience, as seen in my next blog post!

Yes, I will definitely use this in the future with my kids!!!