As our readers know, we adore giving our fans a chance to discuss how they use our service (we like it even more when they talk about how much they love it!) It’s especially heartening when we hear about people who use video messaging to enhance learning. This time, we’re turning the blog over to Mireille “Mimi” Jones Lachi, a Belgian-born and raised educator who teaches French in Missouri. Mimi has found great ways to incorporate our video email service into her students’ lives and her own.
Mimi Jones Lachi - French teacher and mailVU fan
Over the last decade, technology has radically transformed the process of teaching and learning foreign languages. The emergence of Web 2.0 tools has been a lifesaver for anyone working with a shoestring budget. One of my favorite web 2.0 tools is mailVU. I discovered mailVU, via Twitter, and immediately saw the potential use on a personal level. You see, I grew up in Belgium but have been living here in the US since 1995. All my family and friends still live over there. What a great tool for me to use to be able to easily send video messages to them! They can now see my children and their friends. I can take them on a “tour” of the house, etc. Picture this: up to 10 minutes of recording time, straight from my webcam, and shared straight up via email!
mailVU is immediate; there’s no need to wait for an “upload” to be complete. It’s easy; no need to worry about the right video format or converting; it’s delivered to an email address right away, so I don’t have to worry about mom or dad searching YouTube, or asking a million times for the link or worry about any undesired people watching. I decide what; I decide who; and I decide when. I even get to decide how many times my video can be seen. I don’t even need to sign up for anything; it’s ready to go and it is free. My kind of tool…
As an educator, the potential application in my classroom did not escape my notice either. I had been working on incorporating more alternate assignments in hopes of facilitating my students learning experience. I am a French teacher. My main objective is communication. Of course, mailVU had a place in my class. From speaking homework assignments, to extra preparation before an oral presentation, this tool is a gem for my students. I can now “show” them exactly how to move/shape their mouths, etc. to create the correct pronunciation. I can now show them the importance of their body language when presenting. And yes I do know that I was always able to do that before mailVU – all I needed to do was have a video camcorder, hope that they had one too, hope that the format would match what my computer could take and so on. All I’m saying is, mailVU is fast, convenient, easy, and free.
So try it and see if you too are not cheering and chanting with me in a matter of minutes: I love mailVU, I love mailVU, I love mailVU… And you should too!
Thanks so much for your thoughts Mimi! We’re so happy that you’re happy with our video mail platform! Education communication is just one extraordinarily useful way mailVU has been implemented. Our service is flexible across a variety of industries and disciplines. Want to know more? Contact info@mailVU.com.
