Tonight was another interesting experience: video chat. I have done this before when I worked with a representative from Quest to earn a grant to buy laptops for my classroom. BTW, I didn't get the grant :( This was more intense with so many different users, and I don't know why my camera didn't work. My daughter iGoogle chats with her friend all the time. Oh well...live for another day.

I do see some possible applications. I could set up a video chat when students are working on a big project, and in that forum students could ask questions. For example, students were working on their big 10 page research paper for Advanced Comp, and I could schedule video chat at 9:00 PM for all who needed help. And again--advantage to those kids who can afford the technology. I'm afraid the social status gap is widening all the time.

Tonight's chat was a bit unproductive, however, due to technical difficulties. So, I think the technology has a ways to go before it is truly usable, for tonights chat was frustrating to many. I could, however, hear everyone with no drag time, so I suspect I enjoyed the experience more than others. I enjoyed meeting class members this way. I do feel isolated even though I am in a cohort, but tonight I did feel less isolated.

I march on....