Journal #7: The Beginner’s Guide to Interactive Virtual Trips (NETS-T I, II, III, IV,V)

Zanetis, J. (2010, March). The Beginner's guide to interactive virtual field trips. Learning and Leading with Technology, 37(6), Retrieved from http://www.learningandleading-digital.com/learning_leading/20100304#pg22

Summary:  Saying the words “Field Trip” to students usually always evokes excitement. What student doesn’t want to take a break from the ordinary classroom day and experience the real world? Teachers like field trips because they solidify the curriculum in the student’s mind. However, how many students/schools can afford the airline ticket to NASA or the Great Barrier Reef? Virtual field trips (VTFs) bring opportunities for a classroom to travel beyond the borders of the school campus. This article points out two types of VFTs: asynchronous and synchronous. The basic difference is the delivery of asynchronous VFTs is not in real time, whereas synchronous is. Asynchronous VFTs are devoted to a specific topic with technology that incorporates text, audio, podcast and/or streaming video. There is a lot of variability in the quality and relevance of these types of VFTs. Synchronous VFTs are interactive VFTs. In real-time, students can interact with onsite experts who share their organizations’ resources in engaging ways. Engagement comes from the medium itself, connecting the content to the curriculum and having the students ask questions directly to and receive answers from experts. Lesson and materials can be targeted to grade level and students’ level. However, synchronous VFTs have hardware requirements that schools may not have readily available. This also means that your school's technology coordinator needs to help set up videoconferencing that needs to be h.323 compatible with IP-based connections. The bottom line is having the ability to view, interact and learn, whether with an asynchronous or synchronous VFT, about places that the student would never have been able to "go" is a huge advantage over learning about it in a book.

Q1. Where does one find asynchronous and asynchronous VFTs?
A1. In the article, Zanetis lists the following of the asynchronous websites:
http://www.efieldtrips.org/ - E-Field Trips hosts electronic field trips. These field trips consists of 4 parts: a Trip Journal, the Virtual Visit consisting of a streaming video, an Ask the Expert tool and a hosted Web chat.
www.accessexcellence.org/RC/virtual.php - The Access Excellence Resource Center focuses on science- and health-related VFTS with online labs.
www.gaillovely.com/VirtualFieldTrips.htm - Gail Lovely's site proed a hot-linked list which is organized into live journey, interactive environments, travelogues, e-museums, and more.

The following are the synchronous websites Zanetis lists and were the 2008-09 Award-winning VFTs:
Adventures in Medicine & Sicence (AIMS) Program of Saint Louis University (http://aims.slu.edu/)
Center for Puppetry Arts (http://www.puppet.org/)
Cleveland Institue of Music (www.cim.edu/dl/index.php)
Cleveland Museum of Natural History (http://www.cmnh.org/)
George Washington's Mount Vernon Estate (www.mountvernon.org/learn/index.cfm)
Hank Fincken: A National Theatre Company of One (http://www.hankfincken.com/)
HealthSpace (now part of Cleaveland Museum of Natural History) (http://www.cmnh.org/site/classesandprograms/schoolprograms/healthed.aspx)
Life Science Education Center at Marian college (www.marian.edu/EcoLab/Education/Pages/default.aspx)
Louisville Science Center (http://www.louisvillescience.org/)
Mote Marine Laboratory (http://www.mote.org/)
NASA Digital Learning Network (Kennedy Space Center, Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Johnson Space Center, and Goddard Space Flight Center) (http://dln.nasa.gov/dln/content/catalog)
The National WWII Museum (http://www.nationalww2museum.org/)
Oregon Museum of Science and Industry (OMSI) (http://www.omsi.edu/)
The Paley Center for Media (http://www.paleycenter.org/)
Reef HQ Aquarium in Australia (http://www.reefhq.com.au/)
Virent Boradcasting Company (http://www.virent.net/)

Q2. What if my school does not h.323 videoconferencing technology?
A2. Besides the usual fundraising and approaching your PTA group, Zanetis offers another suggestion. 30% of schools may already have installed large-group videoconferencing equipment. Check to see if your school is one of those schools. You may be one of the lucky ones.