VoiceThread is a cloud application, so there is no software to install. The only system requirement is an up-to-date version of Adobe Flash. VoiceThread will work in any modern web browser and on almost any internet connection.
Customer Reviews
Tammy P.
Advanced user of VoiceThreadVoiceThread allows for students to speak, use video, share images, draw on images, and collaborate. It provides a lot of flexibility and ways of interaction. It's very easy for students to use if the professor has set it up. With support, students can create their own VoiceThreads, as well. That means they can create presentations with voice and pictures that other students can view and respond to. VoiceThread also goes above and beyond to make sure slides are accessible.
I dislike that sometimes the interface with D2L makes it so that students think they are posting, but they are not. It's really a mess--and in the past it would create one gradebook column and continuously overwrite it, which is a problem. So I don't use it in D2L but rather link outside. However, if students create a free account instead of using their school account--which doesn't always work--then their work becomes invisible to the people who use the school account. There are some bugs.
It's the only tool I know of that allows students in online courses to create group presentations. I also don't know of another tool that allows students to draw on slides in the asynchronous, online class.
VoiceThread allows me to assign group presentations in online courses that all students in the class can create and then react to and enjoy. It also allows me to put students in groups and assign them slides to annotate with a pen (perhaps put items in order or explain how a graph violates design rules, for instance). It is also very helpful in foreign language classes.
