Virtual Tours

A virtual tour is a way to show people what something looks like from the comfort of their own computer. Instead of actually physically going to a place, people can now access what different places look like from their homes. Virtual tours do not always have to be of a specific place, but can also be a field trip of some sort (subject specific). They are very handy when someone is not able to physically do something at that point of time.

When I teach I could use virtual field trips as a different way to inform students about certain topics. It would be a variation to the lecture they will normally get and a good way to incorporate technology into my lessons. These virtual trips will also be a good thing to do if I know I am going to miss school for any reason. I can give the students their instructions and they can go on the Internet and learn for themselves. It helps create student generated learning as well.

The con for virtual tours is that sometimes the Internet may fail you or you may not have a computer for all of your students. It's hard to pair a lot of students to one computer at a time. A pro is that students can get out of that every day routine and begin to learn for themselves and be held accountable.