New Age Pen Pals: Skype

It is often difficult to encourage students to get excited to learn. One way to get them actively participating in learning is through pen pals.

Having a pen pal helps students practice their writing skills and their patience while waiting for a response. A new way to create the pen pal experience is through Skype or other online video chat systems. While pen pals are great, video chat pals offer a whole new level of engagement and learning.

Some of the benefits of having a video chat pen pal include:

Practicing public speaking. Speaking in front of a group or someone you don’t know is a common fear, but one that be overcome easily. Students who communicate with approved virtual pen pals practice speaking and being understood. The more often they practice communication skills, the less afraid they are of public speaking.

Understanding other perspectives. Students who practice communication skills with someone from another state, country or culture have the opportunity to learn about how that location and culture is similar and different from their own.

Exploring an interest in new topics. Students may not be able to relate to a tsunami in Japan or the custom of eating on the floor because they have not experienced it. By connecting students to another student that has experienced these things, our students become more interested in the topic and the culture surrounding it. This creates a new interest for our students and forces them to become more globally aware.

Practicing a foreign language. It has been said that the only way to really learn a new language is to go live in the country and practice it everyday. Unfortunately, that is not something many people have the opportunity to do. Students can have an international pen pal who they can practice the language with, which will help them pick up the language faster and use it more often.

Building Confidence. Speaking with others and learning about cultures and lifestyles will make your students feel more confident about what they know and about public speaking. Students will be excited to share their new knowledge with friends and it is that excitement for learning that drives education.