Oh, how did the COVID-19 pandemic change the landscape of our live s? Those who went through the most changes are probably students and teachers. Teaching and learning have taken an u-turn compared to what was once deemed as traditional. Of course, technology entered schools and universities some time ago, but in the last couple of years, remote teaching has become so dominant that there’s a danger that it will replace the traditional way sometime in the future. For now, things will remain as they were, but remote teaching is here to stay.
If you belong to this domain, everything must seem new to you. Of course, it is. Before 2020 no one would have believed that today many classes will be held online instead of in the classrooms. But, the initial shock is now behind us, and the adaptation period is certainly over. It is time that we become better at remote teaching. Thankfully this is more than possible. If you are a remote teacher or plan to be one, this is the article for you. In the text below we’re going to discuss the best four ways to improve your remote teaching.
As we said, this is a true possibility these days. If you were an excellent regular teacher there’s no reason why not to be one in the online domain. Help is on the way, and that should bring joy to your face. There are many ways you can do this, and we’re going to talk only about the most crucial ones. Considering that we live in the age of the internet and technology, you won’t be surprised that we’re going to suggest a few tech solutions for your teaching skills improvements. Without further ado, let’s start with the first way we have in mind.
1. Get a Screen Recorder
Let’s start here. You couldn’t find a better place. If you’re into online teaching or learning having a screen recorder is a must, and FlashBack PRO could be just what you’re asking for. It will allow you to record your screen which has many benefits. First of all, it doesn’t serve just to record what you’re teaching. No, it is a useful tool to record many other things, like videos, and various shorter lessons, which you can later edit into one of your future remote teaching gigs. Record a screen means capturing a video you need, a website, or simply your desktop.
The best part is that the same app allows you to edit those clips in a way you’ll make them suitable for what you need out of a recorded video. Furthermore, it has sharing options, which you can use professionally and recreationally to share what you create on YouTube or social media platforms. This is a great tool for everyone in the video domain as there’s no need to use it professionally at all. But if you’re a remote teacher, start improving your skills by attaining them.
2. Make Sure Everyone Participates
When it comes to remote teaching making students concentrate is the hardest part. It is also hard for you to keep an eye on everyone and see who is not paying attention. Participation during online lessons is equally important as doing it while you’re attending the class. But, many teachers complain that less than 50% of their students are not participating. Students will always be students regardless of the method of teaching. So, it’s up to the teacher to make things clear and force everyone to be engaged.
This is best done by being clear. Set clear goals, and make them understand assignments and their obligations. The clarity of expectations and assignments ensures that students remain focused in online lessons and actively participate, which leads to a more productive and engaging remote learning environment. You need to take special care about the timing of the classes. Ensure that everyone knows when the lesson starts when they need to be logged in, and when to report their presence.
Create a schedule of when you’ll talk with each student, but also make it random. You need to keep them on their toes. Students who know that they need to be concentrated are more likely to participate in classes. Lead by an example. Praise those who report often, and criticize those who are missing out on communicating. Participation is the key to successful remote teaching.
3. Keep Everyone Motivated
The best way to give students motivation is by installing a system of rewards. This is easy to do, right? It is. You had one during regular lessons. Everyone does. Of course, it is much easier to hand out rewards when you’re talking to someone in person. But, despite moving over to the digital world a reward is still a reward. You ought to know this. So, create a reward system that will work as a motivation for your students. It can be created in the form of points, tokens, or chips. Ensure that the one with the most points collected during the year gets a valuable reward. Make rewards for the top three students in the class. Competition breeds attention. Everyone wants to be a winner, and that will never change. You might think that this will not function in the virtual surrounding, but you’re wrong. It works the same way.
4. Content is The King
As in the many other areas which are tightly connected to all things internet, remote teaching needs to be based on excellent content. Having standard lessons and just passing them by to your students is not enough in a virtual domain. No, you need to work on your content. It’s not only about expanding it and making it more fun, it is more about optimizing it for remote teaching. Ensure that your content is up to the task of remote teaching. This is possible to be done.
The standard way of I talk you listen and write down will not do the trick in the virtual classroom. Work on your content, expand what you got, and make it modern in a way. In the same way, you must teach your students something, you must get acquainted with the way you can do your job better in new surroundings. As we suggested in our first paragraph, you can do so much with only a better focus on preparing your materials.
