Utilize Skype to Communicate with Your Student
Familiar with Skype? This no-cost service available through the Internet allows users to interact via email and webcam interface. More and more students are using it to connect with family and friends back home.

It's not unusual for families to communicate with their student daily these days, via Skype, text messaging, Facebook and cell phone. Although parents have gotten a bad rap for being so involved in their student's college experience, some researchers believe that using technology to regularly communicate with your student is not necessarily a bad thing. Barbara Hofer, a professor of psychology at Middlebury College (VT), told NorthJersey.com (8/9/10), "The positive aspect of [the frequent communications] is that this is a generation that has a very close relationship with their parents." She believes that fostering close ties and providing support as they learn and grow is appropriate, but that trying to make every decision for them is not.

Check out the possibilities for communication via Skype at www.skype.com.