Adventures in Skyping Italy

February 22, 2010. Gianna Mazzeo planned carefully for our latest Grade 7 Skype with Istituto Tecnico Industriale Statale (Liceo Scientifico Tecnologico) in Barcellona. We gathered the students and called our Italian partners, but to no avail; no answer. Finally, our students had to leave for the next period class. I disconnected the cables and was about to close Skype when Barcellona called. Signora Mazzeo rushed after her students and brought them back. The Italian class had been locked out of their videoconferencing room since it was after the school day in Italy and the technician had already gone home. This is an example of the challenges we face in connecting schools in different time zones. The teachers in Italy had to keep their students after school to speak to us; we had to schedule our students as early as possible during the school day.  The students  had a good conversation with the time available. This was a spontaneous conversation centered on the theme of family. They spoke without notes. Their comfort level is increasing each time they connect. The opportunity for authentic conversation forces both sides to use their skills and vocabulary. Many thanks to Signora Mazzeo for her tenacity and flexibility, two critical traits in connecting across such a distance.