Online teaching is attractive. It opens up many new avenues for teachers, saves their time and energy, and allows them to expand their skill set. However, it can present a challenge for teachers who must adapt to the use of technology to create an engaging learning environment for students. Interacting with learners and getting them to respond can be difficult. That is why it is important for teachers to know the tips to maximize learning in a virtual classroom. Here are some ways they can create an effective virtual classroom:
Engage Learners
For an effective virtual classroom, teachers should engage learners using various online tools at their disposal. They can grab the students’ attention by interacting with them through the chatbox, asking questions for pop quizzes, or creating polls. Use videos to make the lessons more interesting and break down the content. This will help increase engagement from students and allow the teacher to create a supportive learning environment. Plan your interaction with students ahead of the class to understand how best to engage them.
Set Rules
It is better to lay down some rules of engagement to create an effective virtual classroom. Since it can be hard to keep track of the interaction level of each learner, establish some guidelines for interaction so that learners do not talk over each other and everybody is able to communicate. This will help the teacher keep track of who is engaged and who is not. It would also be helpful to set down rules for the use of other devices while taking a virtual class.
Pay Attention To Students
In a traditional classroom, teachers can observe students and adapt their teaching style. In a virtual classroom, teachers do not have that benefit since they cannot observe how a student is responding to their lesson. This is also why some students feel isolated in online classrooms. Teachers must pay individual attention to each student and get to know them. This would simulate the atmosphere of a traditional classroom and make learning more interesting.
Following these tips to maximize learning in your virtual classroom, will not help you in creating effective lectures, but will also help the students in clearing their doubts more quickly.