Technology Center: November 2010

I recently spotted this very interesting site called Vyou.com which exploits video to create asynchronous conversations. I find it interesting because of the simple way it creates presence. As you can see below, it looks like the person (me in this case) is waiting ready for your question.

All visitors need to do is type a question into the text line below the video and the creator will get a message with the question and post a reply. You can try it if you wish by posting a question to me. I'm not sure yet how long it will take for me to answer though.

This is very quick and easy to set up. You just go to the site and register for free, then once your registration is validated you record two short video clips. One is the one you can see above and another for unanswered questions. As questions are answered they appear below the 'waiting' video.

It's also a bit like Twitter in that you can 'follow' people and build up a group of followers. These people all receive notification of any video responses posted.

I'm trying this out because I think it's a great way of getting students to speak to each other and ask you or each other questions. All you need is a webcam and a microphone.

How to use this with students

You could set up your own grammar or vocabulary answers site and students could send you questions.
You could get students to ask each other questions about a story.
You could play animal, mineral or vegetable and each students has to ask question to see what you are thinking about.
You could just get students asking and answering questions about their likes and dislikes etc.
I think this would work particularly well for class exchanges with students from other classes or countries.

What I like about it

It's free and very quick and simple to set up.
There's a real feeling of presence and that someone is there waiting for your question.
I can generate some real spoken interaction.
It's a very simple idea made very effective.
You can embed the video chat into your blog or site.

What I'm not so sure about

Of course something like this is very much open to abuse, especially as it allows anonymous questions to be posted.
The widget which I've embedded into my post is a bit big and it would be nice to have smaller sizes.
A lot of the example conversations that have been created on the site are a bit adult in nature and certainly inappropriate for younger learners, so if you use it, be sure to use it with adults and embed it into a blog or site so that your students don't wander round the site.
WebCams aren't generally very flattering, especially in a bad light, but you can always wear a big hat or dark glasses.

If you do give this a try, please do follow me and I'll reciprocate, as I'd like to find out a bit more about how this will work in practice. You can visit my profile on the site at: http://vyou.com/nikpeachey . There you will be able to see a better view of the full size widget.

I hope you find this interesting.

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Nik Peachey

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