Growing Your Engagement at Klatch
How to Make Your Online Workshop More Engaging
- Engaging
- Virtual
- Workshop
- Facilitate
- Successful
- Teach
- E-learning
- Online
- Education
A virtual workshop can be a great way to facilitate successful teaching; in the wake of the pandemic, online workshops have increased in popularity, and some even prefer virtual learning to traditional in-person courses. However, an online environment can become mundane with inherently less opportunity for person-to-person interaction due to the nature of e-learning.
But don't fret - there are many things you can do to make the virtual experience more engaging for learners and give your learners a quality remote education.
Establish Guidelines for Constructive Conversation
Providing clear and concise instructions is important to allow students time to interact with one another. To encourage your students to participate more, creating a safe environment where they can express their thoughts and input is crucial!
The following tips can help your learners engage in constructive conversation:
1. Show consideration for your students' voices - you, as a facilitator, should be more of a listener than a lecturer! Try not to monopolize the workshop, interrupt them when talking, or speak over them. Also, be aware of how much time your speaking takes up. Klatch recommends that facilitators talk for less than 30% of the workshop!
2. Pay attention to your language and behavior when speaking with others. Make sure that what you say is meaningful, relevant, and helpful; avoid talking in a way that insults or aggresses someone else.
Be conscious of the way you use body language as well; don't cross arms or legs rigidly while listening, for example. You may be on Zoom, but our body language shows through even just from a headshot - your students will pick up on your stance and disposition instantly.
Discussion guidelines in online communities should include thoughtful and considerate responses, as well as open-ended questions. This encourages diverse perspectives, which is important for improving understanding.
Encourage Flexible Active Learning
Active learning involves using a variety of different modes of communication, both synchronous and asynchronous. This allows students the flexibility to engage in the learning process in the way that works best for them. You can use online forums, blogs, and live sessions for discussion and collaboration. Incorporating group activities into the teaching process is also a terrific way to boost student engagement.
Active Online Classroom Presence
As an online facilitator, try to replicate the feeling of a physical classroom for your learners. Slide decks, videos, and audio recordings can be used to transmit information; you can dedicate in-class time for work while playing helpful videos in the background to replicate the feeling of a live study session. Online communities, blogs, and in-person meetings can encourage conversation and teamwork while reassuring your students that you are available to support their learning.
Create One-on-One Opportunities
Organizing one-to-one meetings between students and their tutors allow for more informal interaction. In addition, facilitators can email each student monthly to see if they are okay and follow up with those who are in the most need of assistance. This way, contact is easy to make, and problems can be quickly identified.
Students are using social media to keep in touch with each other beyond the formal institutional channels. This allows for informal conversations that are difficult to have through the traditional online learning environment.
Assign Student Moderators
You can make your workshop more exciting for your learners by letting them handle more responsibility - one way to conduct this is to implement student moderators. There should be rules in place, such as checking the community once every day and publishing at least X questions and X responses. You can also have more than one student moderator and ask a group to take over conducting some lessons and keeping in check with the class.
If there is more than one moderator, they should split up the days so that they have time off during the week. This allows for informal conversations that are difficult to have when you are running a structured lecture where all students are listening.
When students are assigned to moderating discussions, it has a positive impact on the learning experience. This is because student moderators bring a different perspective to the conversation and can help stimulate new ideas. Additionally, as moderators feel ownership over their role, this motivates them to participate in discussions more effectively.
Throughout the week, make sure to speak up so that students don't feel as if you've forgotten about them, but be mindful not to overshadow other speakers. Provide feedback to your student moderators as they execute their new responsibilities.
Use Technology to Your Advantage
Since the pandemic, teachers have realized that they need to develop more technical skills to be successful. It is easy for them to put off developing these skills, however, because technology continues to grow and change at a breakneck pace.
Whiteboards are an excellent way to boost engagement in online classrooms. For example, zoom's whiteboard feature allows educators to draw diagrams and write text, which helps facilitate collaboration and enhances learning opportunities.
Key Takeaway - Focus on Connection!
Since online learning is still growing in popularity, it's essential to focus on making the virtual classroom setting as engaging and helpful as possible. This is done by using memorable visuals and engaging activities that interest students.
Virtual classrooms have several advantages for students, teachers, and educational institutions. They enable students to learn from anywhere in the world, including in rural and underserved areas with potential educational gaps. For those who might otherwise have difficulty integrating into a conventional classroom environment or who might find it challenging to attend traditional school due to transportation difficulties or other challenges, virtual learning can be a solution.
A virtual workshop can be a great way to facilitate successful teaching. Creating a stimulating learning environment, encouraging student participation, and using technology to your advantage can make the experience more engaging for students. In many ways, with the proper methods, online learning can be even more interactive than your traditional classroom!