Due to the worldwide pandemic, many higher learning institutions turned to online teaching. The abrupt change forced both students and teachers to adjust to the new normal. Many people have developed articles about the virtual classroom experience. People have suggested ideas on how to better the experience. If you want to share your teaching and writing knowledge, writezillas.com is the best place for you.
Guidelines for Virtual Teaching in Class
- Create a Learner’s Code of the Internet Etiquette
A few guiding rules for students to follow become essential to have order and a smooth sailing experience. Here are some guides to consider.
- Log on Beforehand and stay on.
Late logging in portrays rudeness. Also, going on and off is rude.
- No Multitasking
Just like a one-on-one classroom, it becomes vital to have undivided attention while in the virtual class.
- No Smoking
There exist a smoking ban on Campus. The same rules apply in virtual classrooms.
- No Eating
Doing it in class is a sign of rudeness.
- No uninvited Guests
Only enrolled students can attend the virtual classes.
- No pets
Apart from service animals, the virtual classroom excludes pets.
- Avoid distractive environments
Distractive environments cause a lot of interruptions in class.
- Use correct grammar while posting on the forum.
Slang and incorrect grammar are unacceptable in class.
- Contact the help desk for any assistance since the teacher cannot help while teaching.
- Attendance
Absenteeism and lateness can result into earning low grades.
- Decreasing Screen time in class Increases Engagement in Class
According to research, college students spend a lot of their time staring at their smartphones. The activity down below gives a solution to the problem.
- Spend 10-15 minutes identifying one object that proves emotionally valuable to you.
- Write a 200-word essay telling why you hold the object dear to you.
- Make a connection between the object and an assignment given in this course for reading.
- After 40 minutes, explain and show the object and explain why it proves essential to you.
The activity helps students move from their screens, tasks them with linking their life with an object, and finally, gives other students a sight of what another student treasures.
- Shake up the Escape Rooms
Even before the pandemic struck, many students preferred chatting through texts instead of one-on-one chats. Virtual classrooms can at times feel boring. But, while assigning the escape rooms, pair the students according to their lack of common interests. In group studies, pose questions with no definite answer or quizzes from currently studied material. Such opposite combinations aid the students in setting their differences aside to solve quizzes. Secondly, the pairing makes the classes after that one more engaging. Lastly, pairing students with different opinions and personalities brings out positive and brilliant results in general. It becomes vital to bridge the gap created between online learners and their tutors.
Conclusion
With the new normal, Virtual classrooms are probably here to stay longer than we anticipated. Most friendships got affected long before the pandemic happened all this because of smartphones and computers. The above tips are useful ways of making virtual classrooms more engaging and informative.