Web conferencing was not possible until the age of the personal computer and the Internet, but now its use is exploding. Web conferencing is similar to a telephone conference call except that with a computer screen there is so much more that can be made available. This in turn has made so many more options possible for educators and others (Baigs & Bates, 2012; Bee & Gardner, 2012; Bonk et al, 2002; Skyler, 2009). Depending on the software license from the vendor, Web conferencing can scale from 2 to thousands of participants. The information sharing options among participants include audio, multiple simultaneous webcam feeds, document cameras, screen sharing and shared mouse control of each other's screens, interactive shared whiteboards, quizzes, text chat, session archiving/recording, file sharing and more.
Western Carolina University provides a free GoToMeeting account to all students and faculty that ask for one. Students can get their own accounts by visiting the Help Desk in the Technology Commons in the bottom floor of Hunter Library or call our IT Help Desk. All those with accounts can set up their own Web conferences and issue invitations to attend at their own initiative.
This is an opportunity for everyone to become active users to better understand the potential. In general it makes it possible for work colleagues, friends and family to be sent an email invitation with a link that makes them part of a live meeting where ever the person sending the invitations happens to be with their computer. Web conferencing has also opened the door to innovations that are generally new if not rather radical from past educational practices. Guest speakers can be invited into your classroom from any where in the world. Businesses are using them for job interviews. Composing and design teams are getting together to create and plan. And most fascinating of all, teachers are beginning to team teach live into each other's classroom in teams of various sizes, taking turns with presentations, lesson plans.
The basics of Web Conferencing
Web conferencing software generally includes the capacity to display live video as well as a feature that also allows a screencast of the conference. Screencasting is recorded video and audio of events on the computer screen, a process also called recording and archiving. Screencasting or video editing software can also be used to edit a long Web conference into short more specific useable clips.
The screenshot image on the left is of a brand of software called GoToMeeting. The look of the screen varies with software product to product but though the layout varies, the feature sets available overlap heavily. The Blue striped area on the right of the image shows the controls for managing the Web conference. To the left of the control box is a user's desktop and whatever windows he or she wishes to share. Large button are available to control screen sharing and Webcam sharing.
There are numerous Web conferencing software options, In addition to GoToMeeting they include: Skype, Collaborate, iTeam,and many others. Web conferencing events are set up by the user through the account's software access that they are given by the vendor.
Live Team Teaching
Are live online teaching teams a worthwhile and effective thing for educators to do? Live online team teaching means two or more people using Web conferencing software tools to take turns leading the teaching that is shared by everyone participating in the Web conference. Participants are in two or more locations. The capacity to archive teaching activity also enables teams to collaboratively study archives for ways to improve.
As it is just beginning to be tried, it is impossible to answer that question directly at this time. It is clear that human culture has long valued teamwork for its productivity and long recognized that creating an effective team is a valuable art of its own that requires some particular skills and knowledge. It is also clear that many within our culture are currently and actively engaged in using and improving online teamwork for both enjoyment and productivity. It is logical then at this point in the 21st century to explore online team teaching to see what can be done and learn how to improve it.
Finding your teaching team partners
There are many ways to find teachers who are willing to experiment with some form of live sharing between classrooms. It could be the teacher down the hallway, our colleague in another school in the school district. However, the Web allows you to reach anywhere on the globe. Skype has done the most to facilitate teachers teaming live between their classroom, providing a way for teachers to contact each other locally, regionally and globally through their Skype in the Classroom initiative. The USA Today ran an interesting story on Skype's approach, Skype is at home with Microsoft (Baig & Bates, 2012).
Another well known system for planning and contacting others is made available by iEarn, http://www.iearn.org/. Their projects are generally not live, allowing for much greater time flexibility.
Job Interview
At some phase of the job interview process, many companies do some screening of candidates using Web conferencing software. It oftens occurs as a final step in narrowing the pool before bringing someone in for a face-to-face meeting. Practicing and working with an interview coach are excellent ideas if an online interview is in your future. This can be tremendous savings in time and cost for both the candidate and organization that is hiring.
Make a Good Impression for Any Web or Video Conference
A superb place to start thinking about the "live online" challenge of making a good impression for any Web conference is to watch the five minute clip below. The Time Magazine writer doing a story on the topic of a webcam job interview brings in a television executive for some coaching on best web interview practices (backup link). Every one of the ideas in this videoclip has application to a wide range of Internet video uses, from live team teaching in classrooms to personal communication with friends and colleagues.
The Web Conferencing Questions
Those who are "on-stage" throughout their careers, such as teachers, have particular reason to examine this growing potential for sharing instruction and teaching practice. The questions cover a wide range of topics: What is the message or concept to be communicated and what is needed to express it best live? What kind of tone of voice and audio quality is needed? What kind of visual setup creates the best impression and makes it easiest for viewers to watch? What is the best kind of webcam to use and how do you deal with built-in webcams that cannot be positioned into the ideal location? What kind of mic is best and how does one deal with the built-in mics of personal computers? How many different ways are there to share the types of compositions of the digital palette over the Web? What are the best choices of Web conferencing software and what are the options for becoming competent with the hand you are dealt whether you like the computer application or not? When is text typing (chat) useful and when does it get in the way of an ongoing conference?
Testing
Try before you fly! Any form of live communication beyond face-to-face and phone use needs to be tried and tested before an actual event. Any computer activity including audio, video or file sharing that needs to happen in the actual conference needs to be part of the preparation and practicing for the event. This include many features. Draw on the whiteboard. Share out computer windows. Show the slides. Test the mic and text chat. That is, know how it works.
How do I sound?
Audio quality is the meat and potatoes, the main course. The side dishes are always important too and can become "plan B", that is one can wave, draw pictures, share screens and textchat when the audio fails. However, failure with audio can be fatal to useful communication for many settings. The primary concerns are volume and clarity.
Is it loud enough? Use stronger computer speakers. Move closer to the microphone but not too close.
Is it clear enough? If the audio fidelity is not high enough, it becomes to hard to hear the beginning and ending sounds of words. More careful enunciation can really help in difficult audio situations.
A related concern is the tone of voice and expression. Webcams, like television, are "hot" settings in which the viewer and speaker are close to the screen and cameras which magnifies things, even things which are otherwise ignored and unnoticed. Little increases in the edge of voice along with intentity of expression can be useful, but can also easily go too far, magnifying an expression into something much bigger than what was intended.
If wearing a mic, put it on one side your head, perhaps on a shirt or blouse collar. Do not put the microphone in front of your lips. If you have a habit of self-expression through making air noises with your mouth, or whispering or quietly talking outloud to yourself while thinking, microphones magnify those sounds significantly. This can be both annoying as well as unintentionally and perhaps embarrassingly revealing. When not talking or about to talk, it is always a good practice to mute your own microphone.
What kind of visual setup creates the best impression and makes it easiest for viewers to watch?
Lighting
Bad lighting needs to be seen as something like bad breath. A small amount awareness can lead to some quick fixes. A best first step is to position the speaker's on-camera location to make best use of natural window and standard ceiling lighting and visually interesting but non-distracting backgrounds.
Our eyes and our cameras focus our attention on the stronger source of light. That is, the person on camera or the object to be displayed should have a stronger light value than other things visible in the scene. Sometimes the available light needs to be enhanced. Directed lighting such as spotlights should also be considered. This inexpensive webcam model on the left has 4 LED lights built-in around the lens. The LightintheBox site carries this product. Searching Froogle for "webcams with light" will reveal other ideas.
Because cameras have automatic light metering, they pick out the strongest light value being received and adjust to make the best picture. If the light is bouncing off the bright white wall behind a person, their the face and body have a darker light value because the camera's adjusted to the bright wall or any background white object. If the contrast is strong enough, it could make the face and body a dark cardboard like silhouette.
Different kinds of light can make a person look worse than they feel or even better than they feel. Florescents can make a person look pale. Other lights send out stronger green, yellow or blue tone. Where sitting outside is possible, scenes not in the direct sunlight can provide great lighting. Once outside though, it is harder to control for background noise and often very difficult to see the computer screen.
Background Setting
Authors of books and stories think careflully about the settings and scenes for their characters and events. So do TV and film directors. The same applies to live communication that may include video. Think about where to stand or site when on camera, then stand there and look over your shoulder. Generally there is more of the background image than a person's personal image on the display screen so consider carefully what the background communicates. Surroundings can have their own covert and subliminal messages.
It is also important to be able to control for some level of safety from interruptions if at home or the office for certain kinds of professional meetings. A cat jumping in front of the camera, lawn mowers, barking dogs, noisy kids, and colleagues stopping by to share a spot of food are to be avoided. Tell family, friends and colleagues if there is a meeting and then hang a sign on the door as a reminder. There is a good reason those TV studios have a blinking red warning light outside the door.
Web conferencing software
What the software promises it can do and what an individual can do with it are two different things. Practice and experience will build confidence and professionalism and reveal what the software can really do and what it does poorly. Most forms of Web conferencing have free versions that can be tried before attending or attempting an actual event.
Making it part of your life and communication with friends and family will make its use in professional situation feel natural and relaxed. For example, having a webcam cooking event and/or dinner with a distant friend or family member can provide fun and practical practice.
References
Bee, S. B., & Gardner, D. (2012). Crossing the borders in language learning through the use of web conferencing as an elearning tool. International Journal of Web Based Communities, 8(1), 120-132.
Bonk, C., Ehman, L., Hixon, E. & Yamagata-Lynch, L. (2002). Pedagogical TICKIT: Web Conferencing to Promote Communication and Support During Teacher Professional Development. Journal of Technology and Teacher Education, 10(2), 205-233. http://www.editlib.org/p/8959.
Skylar, A. A. (2009). A comparison of asynchronous online text-based lectures and synchronous interactive web conferencing lectures. Issues in Teacher Education, 18(2), 69-84.
Version 1.02 - August 20, 2012 | Page author: Houghton
Web conferencing was not possible until the age of the personal computer and the Internet, but now its use is exploding. Web conferencing is similar to a telephone conference call except that with a computer screen there is so much more that can be made available. This in turn has made so many more options possible for educators and others (Baigs & Bates, 2012; Bee & Gardner, 2012; Bonk et al, 2002; Skyler, 2009). Depending on the software license from the vendor, Web conferencing can scale from 2 to thousands of participants. The information sharing options among participants include audio, multiple simultaneous webcam feeds, document cameras, screen sharing and shared mouse control of each other's screens, interactive shared whiteboards, quizzes, text chat, session archiving/recording, file sharing and more.
Web conferencing software generally includes the capacity to display live video as well as a feature that also allows a screencast of the conference. Screencasting is recorded video and audio of events on the computer screen, a process also called recording and archiving. Screencasting or video editing software can also be used to edit a long Web conference into short more specific useable clips. 
It oftens occurs as a final step in narrowing the pool before bringing someone in for a face-to-face meeting. Practicing and working with an interview coach are excellent ideas if an online interview is in your future. This can be tremendous savings in time and cost for both the candidate and organization that is hiring.
Bad lighting needs to be seen as something like bad breath. A small amount awareness can lead to some quick fixes. A best first step is to position the speaker's on-camera location to make best use of natural window and standard ceiling lighting and visually interesting but non-distracting backgrounds.