Using Glow to Connect Remote Schools
Please note that this cookbook refers to Glow Meet using Marratech. Glow Meet is now delivered over Adobe Connect which offers enhanced functionality. To find out more about Glow Meet using Adobe Connect click here. The principles around the benefits of Glow Meet are the same regardless of the technology used for Glow Meet.
Overview
Highland Local Authority covers an area of land equivalent to that of Belgium. As a result, the schools within the Authority are very widely dispersed. Even within an Associated Schools Group, the distances between schools can be vast.
In this cookbook we will look at how one Associated Schools Group in Highland embarked upon using Glow to enhance communication and collaboration and to widen the learning opportunities of all children.
Context
The Mallaig ASG was chosen to pilot Glow within Highland, in part due to the geographical challenges it presented and in part due to the limited broadband connectivity that the schools initially had. Half of the Primary Schools associated with Mallaig High School are situated on the small isles, namely Rum, Eigg, Muck and Canna. Others, such as Inverie Primary in Knoydart, whilst on the mainland, is accessed by boat from Mallaig, otherwise it is more than a 2 hour drive away covering over 80 miles!
High School pupils from the islands board in Mallaig during the week, meaning contact with their families is restricted. Sometimes too, these pupils are unable to attend school if the weather prevents the ferry from sailing.
Communication between home and school, and between the schools themselves, can therefore be difficult and getting staff together for development or collaborative events is extremely challenging, with meetings and events usually having to be coordinated with ferry sailings.
Most of the Primary Schools in the Mallaig ASG are small, some with rolls of less than 20 pupils. Coupled with their remoteness, this means that pupils do not always have the ready access to specialists and experts that pupils in larger, more urban schools might have.
As a result, the Mallaig ASG was keen to find out how Glow could benefit them
One of the tools that quickly became an obvious choice for the schools was Glow Meet, Glow’s video conferencing tool.
In this cookbook we will look at
• Examples of how the schools have used Glow Meet
• How to set up a Glow Meet
• What technical requirements should be considered
• What the impact has been on the pupils and staff
Ingredients
What did the Mallaig ASG need to facilitate their use of Glow Meet?
• A Glow Group, accessible by all in the ASG
• A Glow Meet web part
• Web cams
• Microphones
In the next section, we will look at examples of Glow Meets involving pupils and staff in the Mallaig ASG, then find out how to set up a Glow Meet within a Glow Group.
How has Glow Meet been used by the Mallaig ASG?
Below are some examples of how Glow Meet has been used throughout the ASG.
English Lesson
Recently, Vikki MacKinnon, an English teacher from Mallaig High school, delivered a lesson via Glow Meet to pupils in one of the associated Primary Schools, Arisaig. (Other schools had been invited, but were unable to join due to conflicts with other activities).
The pupils discussed a poem with Vikki, explored its language and looked at how this had been used to influence the reader. Vikki used the shared whiteboard within Glow Meet to display the poem to all of the pupils, but left blanks where some of the words should have been. Pupils were then able to contribute to the shared whiteboard and fill in the blanks. Pupils were able to explain their choice of words and when given the original version of the poem, they gave thoughtful explanations for the poet’s choices too.
The lesson had been arranged as part of the High School’s transition programme, to help familiarise pupils with staff in Mallaig High and introduce them to the types of lesson they might have when they move to S1.
Vikki was very pleased with the pupils’ responsiveness during the lesson and their ease of using Glow Meet, saying:
“The pupils responded well to the tasks set and didn’t appear to be intimidated by using this medium. They were enthusiastic and well motivated during the lesson. They were able to use the interactive whiteboard to see written instructions and to record their answers. I believe this helped to keep the pupils on task and focused on the lesson. It gives pupils a level of responsibility and ownership too.”
Vikki also felt that using Glow Meet saved time, saying, “it was practical as well, because using Glow Meet meant I did not have to travel the 10 or so miles to Arisaig Primary School”
French Lesson
A few weeks ago, pupils from many of the Mallaig ASG schools took part in a French lesson using Glow Meet. Pupils from Mallaig High, Mallaig Primary, Arisaig Primary, Lady Lovat Primary and Inverie Primary all took part. This gave pupils access to a specialist that they might not normally have been able to learn from. Amongst other activities, the pupils sang songs in French.
Gaelic Lesson
Recently, Megan, a pupil at Mallaig High School, used Glow Meet to teach a Gaelic song to pupils in Arisaig Primary School. This took place over two sessions.
The first part was in the morning, when Megan taught the song. The pupils could see and hear Megan singing, and could also see the words of the song, as Megan had put these onto the shared whiteboard.
Perhaps more powerfully though, the Glow Meet session was recorded, enabling the Arisaig pupils to watch and listen again after the lesson, so that they could continue to hear the correct pronunciation of the words and remember the tune. They then practised the song over and over.
In the afternoon, they joined back up with Megan via Glow Meet, and sang back to her the song she had taught them. Megan was then able to help refine the pupils’ pronunciation of some of the phrases, as well as translating the song for them. The session was extremely successful and very enjoyable for all involved.
Click the link below to watch extracts from the afternoon Gaelic Glow Meet session.
Gaelic Lesson on Glow Meet (5:00)
Music Tuition
Another example, of Glow Meet use, is it being utilised for music tuition.
A violin instructor has been using the video conferencing facility to provide tuition to a pupil who lives many miles away. The girl receiving tuition is in fact a pupil at Ardnamurchan High School (not part of the Mallaig ASG) and so is over an hour’s drive away from the teacher in the Mallaig area. By using video conferencing, the pupil and teacher are able to have more regular contact than might otherwise be possible, and travel time for the teacher is eliminated, so allowing her more time to dedicate to tuition.
Recipe
The video links below give information on how to use Glow Meet:
How to set up a Glow Meet (5:36)
How to join and take part in a Glow Meet session (3:38)
How to use the video, audio and chat facility within a Glow Meet meeting room (6:19)
How to use the shared whiteboard in a Glow Meet meeting room (8:25)
Impact
The use of Glow Meet amongst the Mallaig ASG has been highly beneficial.
Pupils have had access to resources that they would not normally have and both time and money have been saved by teachers and pupils not having to travel to meetings or for lessons.
You can hear one pupil and her music teacher talking about the impact and benefits that Glow Meet has had for them in the following video clip
Benefits of using Glow Meet – Interview with teacher and pupil (1:10)
Further teacher comments:
John Fisher is Depute Headteacher at Mallaig High School. He had this to say about Glow:
“Glow Meet has been used for a number of purposes all of which have proved a big success.
Meetings between staff from different remote schools has been a tremendous boon. One of the drawbacks of working in a single or two teacher Primary School on an island or a remote mainland location is the sense of isolation. Attending an Associated School Group meeting for some staff used to involve a three day trip. Now they can attend and participate in staff meetings using Glow Meet. Reaction from staff has been very positive and most of us can hardly believe how well this system works. We use netbooks or MacBooks with built in cameras and microphones which makes the whole experience even easier than using an external webcam and microphone.
Lessons in Mallaig High have been delivered from a distance using Glow Meet. Our one Gaelic teacher is on maternity leave and sourcing a replacement locally has proved impossible. The ‘S’ Grade class is taught on a weekly basis by a Gaelic teacher using Glow Meet. She is able to see and discuss with the class their progress. The Whiteboard facility is used to electronically correct the pupil’s work. Without Glow Meet these youngsters would not have achieved the results they are getting at the moment.
Pupils use Glow Meet at home in order to support their progress in the Gaelic language. This has not been monitored but the class assures me that it is a useful support mechanism.
One of our senior pupils is intending to teach and has delivered singing lessons via Glow Meet to pupils in Arisaig Primary. Indeed she taught the whole school on more than one occasion.
As part of the primary secondary induction process secondary teachers are now using Glow Meet to teach primary 7 classes. Once again the use of the audio, video and whiteboard facilities proved to be a big success.
Regular discussions between pupils and staff from school to school has broken down barriers. The evidence for this is that the Depute Headteacher from Mallaig High is now so well known by pupils in Arisaig Primary that he has appeared on the school tea towel. Without Glow Meet I would never have made the tea towel!”
Martin Jones is Headteacher of Arisaig Primary, one of the schools in the Mallaig ASG. He says:
“GLOW is proving to be an excellent classroom tool for the delivery of all aspects of curriculum for excellence.
It increases independence, improves motivation to learn, and works beautifully as a tool in co-operative working across the curriculum.
Schools in remote areas have linked in lessons, shared information on topics and created cyber peer groups. Children and teachers from our local secondary have taught primary pupils on line live and eased the fears of transition. It does what it says on the tin …makes you GLOW… “