How to conduct online class or online school effectively.

 

   Attention span for online learning is smaller than the classroom learning and hence techniques for effective online teaching should be different. Further, online lectures cannot really substitute the overall learning experience that students get in a classroom including discussions, collaboration and practical knowledge.  In this article, I am trying to put in a few points on how to get closer to these aspects of learning. At the same making online schools system more affordable for the institutes and yet give personal attention to each student’s individual learning.

• Learning Concepts 

Each individual student may require a different time span to grasp a concept. Since with online learning, they have an option to revisit the same concept again and again. So let them learn on their own. You can have prerecorded videos explaining concepts or you can also use some video explanation available online for free. MyClassAdmin Video Lecture Library can be used for this purpose.

• Problem Solving and Case Studies

Divide the class into small batches for a question-answer live session. Students are asked a particular question and they are allowed to express their views. All students are asked to solve certain questions and any difficulty that they face can be discussed. Teachers can understand how well students are picking up and pay attention to their individual progress.

MyClassAdmin Live Interactive Lectures can be used for this purpose. It has an online poll a facility that can be used for understanding how many students are understanding concepts correctly in the case of large student groups. 

• Projects and Assignments

These are usually done by students outside the classroom with or without collaborating with peers. Collaboration can be encouraged using a discussion forums or creating online groups on social media platforms. The final project and assignment can be submitted to the teacher using the MyClassAdmin platform. Teachers can evaluate submitted assignments/homework using this platform. This can also be used by students to send in essays and other related write-ups.

• Self- Study 

Online Self-paced learning will definitely give a good push to self-study for students. Teachers can make sure they share a good set of reading material with students. For younger students, it can be anything including news articles, stories, etc. For older students, it can be syllabus related Wikipedia page which will inculcate a habit of reading in students. MyClassAdmin Notes will be of use in this case.

•  Informal sessions 

Last but not the least, some informal session can be planned for the complete batch of students, where each student is given some activity each week or student can select a topic or an act what they want to present. It can be sharing knowledge for some topics, singing, or give a presentation. Let students take the lead and handle the technology themselves as much as possible. And teachers can be spectators. Such activities will encourage students to collaborate with their peers. Also, let students talk to each other in these sessions to include some social interaction for them apart from family.

Having said as much as I can, I request each reader to comment their feedback and experience with this new methodology of teaching-learning.  In the next article, I will be writing about an effective way of conducting exams when students are home.