Periscope is one of the hottest new FREE apps out there. With this app you can broadcast live through Twitter. Viewers can interact with the broadcaster in real time, posting questions and making comments. The uses of this app in the classroom are endless. Here are just a few.
- Broaden audience base: Students can broadcast oral presentations through Periscope, opening them to a larger audience. This also opens their presentations up to being more interactive, based on how they respond to comment during their presentation.
- Virtual tours and visits: You can arrange tours and visits with museums and experts across the country, similar to Skype interactions. The difference with Periscope is the portability and the ability to make comments and ask questions throughout the presentation without interrupting the presenter.
- Homework hotline: When class isn’t in session, a teacher or peer tutor can be available for homework questions through Periscope. When a student posts a question through text comment, the homework helper can respond out loud, similar to a video tutoring session.
- Live performances: Students can prepare dramatic scenes, monologues, music performances, and poetry readings and then broadcast on Periscope. Using Twitter to promote the “event” in advance can lead to a larger audience as well.
- Absent students: Using Periscope can give students who are absent access to classroom instruction. When a student is absent, the teacher can deliver instruction using Periscope and the student can watch in real time.
- Observers: Teachers can be transparent in their instruction by inviting anyone from parents to administrators to join them in their classroom through Periscope. This gives parents the ability to see what their child is learning as the learning occurs.
This list is not exhaustive by any means. Possible uses in the classroom are as various as the teachers using it. As with most new technology, the best way to find out how it would work in your classroom is to jump in and try it! Periscope down!
