Skype for Education?

                      Across the nation a number of schools have begun to use the computer program Skype in and out of their foreign language classrooms. The use of Skype for foreign language education was used in the form of video chatting with a pen pal. When I first heard about schools doing this, I wasn't sure how I felt about it. The first thing that came to my mind was, will the student really benefit from this? Will the student find an online predator?, etc. After some reflection and further reading about different schools that use Skype for their foreign language education, I began to see its positives. To answer my previous question about "Will the student find an online predator?" I noticed that for the schools that do use Skype for these purposes, the teachers go about finding good pen pals to pair the students up with, to prevent the student from finding a pen pal themselves which could be dangerous. I also learned that some schools even partner up with schools abroad so that there is learning on both ends of the webcam! An example of this kind of school partnership is the liaison between Montclair State and the University of Nice, in France. Like Montclair and the University of Nice, some schools have a back and forth relationship between the schools, and for the purpose of finding a pen pal, this is very useful! The schools that do have a relationship like this, with a school abroad, could use ask that school to find students who wouldn't mind Skyping with a student from the United States, to practice the target language. (On both ends!) I think that this is a great idea, because not only are both students benefiting language wise, but this also allows for both students to learn a little about each others' cultures as well! By talking with an online pen pal through Skype, the students will be able to practice all that they know in the language and also learn so much from their pen pal about life in another country! I wish that in high school I had a Skype pen pal to chat with because I think that would have made my experience not only more fun and interesting, but also it would have given me the opportunity to learn more about these foreign cultures, and people. Although I was skeptical at first, I do think that Skype could be a great tool for students to use, however I do think that it should be monitored. Some of the schools that do use Skype for this purpose set up a specific time with the foreign school to go to a computer lab, and have the students go on and interact. I think that this is the best idea, that way the students can be monitored, to reduce the risk of online dangers. Do you think that Skype would have helped you in your previous/current foreign language classes?