Skypecasts Academic Potential

This article describes the latest offering from Skype, Skypecasting, and discusses its potential for education.

"Skypecasts as “large, hosted calls on Skype.” Sound pretty simple. Basically you can create or join a large online conference call with UP TO 100 people. Skypecasts are scheduled to begin and end at a certain time and usually have a certain topic of discussion. The users must download and use Skype in order to join the Skypecast."

"There are many programs out there that already allow users to create online classes, but those cost thousands, and even tens of thousands of dollars to implement. This option is FREE. That price tag is always a big plus for education and their limited resources."

"Overall, I was very impressed with Skypecasts and the potential it possesses in education. Above all else mentioned above, I think it is absolutely necessary to help students understand cultures beyond their own. This technology opens up the way for them to do that, not only through other people’s Skypecasts, but by having students create their own."