Skype in the classroom clears beta, goes worldwide

Skype, this week, has rolled out Skype in the classroom, which it describes as a global community that allows teachers to collaborate on classroom projects using Skype. Launched in Beta in December, the company said Skype in the classroom was created in response to--and in consultation with--the growing number of teachers using Skype to help their students learn. It's designed to help like-minded teachers find each other, collaborate on projects and share inspiration and resources.

The service prompts teachers to create a profile that sets out their interests, specialties and location. Once in the system, teachers can create projects, which allows them to find partner classes, partner teachers or guest speakers for a specific learning activity.

Teachers can browse through projects or even search by keyword, which makes it easy to share expertise and collaborate on projects.

They also can browse a members-only directory to find teachers. Once teachers find someone they'd like to connect with, they can add that person as a Skype contact. There's also a directory of resources to help teachers share inspiring videos, links and tips around using in their classrooms.

More than 6,260 educators have used the service, with more than 120 projects already launched and 348 resources listed. A map of the most recent teachers to join the service showed teachers across the U.S., in Europe, Central and South America, Africa and Asia.

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