I have participated in a couple of Wimba sessions, and I like this method for getting information. I don't think that online meetings are the answer in all situations, but the technology is a very helpful tool in today's society. Outside of Wimba sessions that provided information about some of the databases offered on the Kan-Ed website and other related library information, I was unaware that webinars were offered on a variety of subjects. I looked briefly at several of the topics listed in the OPAL archives and found several of interest. Some I could view and some I couldn't. I particularly wanted to look at the ones related to travel, but I needed some plug-in called MIME or something. I'll have to try to access that when I have more time, but I think that the online meetings are great. It's the next best thing to actually being there in person.
I do have a question. On OPAL, I found a webinar about the book entitled Children of Terror. The two ladies who authored this book were being interviewed about their experiences during the Holocaust. It was an audio version, I believe. If you wanted to use this in the classroom, is it permissible to do that? If so, how do you search for materials of this kind? Do you have to know about such sites as OPAL and search them directly, or will your browser find these webinars when a search term such as Holocaust is used? I haven't tried searching for webinars on particular subjects, but I think I will try that and see if I can find materials that might be of interest to me and other teachers in my building.
