Distance Learning Best Practices

Share your video to help students feel more comfortable

Not only will students feel more comfortable, but they are more likely to be engaged, as it will feel more like a real classroom. Additionally, greeting students as they trickle into the session will add a layer of comfort.

Encourage students to use the chat area to ask questions during class

To limit interruptions, direct students to the chat function to ask questions.

Ask students to be on mute when they aren’t speaking

Background noise can be very distracting to others during class. To keep focus on the content, reiterate to students at the beginning of the class to mute themselves. Be prepared to mute others if necessary.

Ensure students know the best way to reach
you with questions between classes

Whether it’s via Webex Teams, email, or your LMS, make sure students understand the best ways and the best times to communicate with you.

Purposefully use class time for students to share
ideas and feedback about distance learning

Everybody learns differently. To make sure no student is left behind, schedule time at the end of lectures to gather ideas and feedback.

Plan ways to replace in-person activities with virtual ones

With features like whiteboarding, in-meeting chat, and screen sharing, in-class games and activities are more than possible. Check out some tips on virtual course design here.

Password protect your virtual classroom

To ensure the safety of you and your students, make sure the password protection option is enabled on your admin page. For more best practices on safe and secure meetings, click here.

Create a distance learning “Code of Conduct”

Before hosting your first virtual classroom, establish ground rules for students when joining meetings and messaging spaces. Reiterate that in-class policies apply, whether it be in a physicial classroom or not.

Record and post all class sessions so everyone can
reference them later

Not only are recordings helpful for students to watch, but great for you to reference to grow as a professor. Learn more about recordings here.

Provide a checklist for students to follow before joining

Testing audio and video connection, not having a distracting background, and having good lighting are a few good items to remind students of before starting a call. Take a look at the Quick Start Guide for Students for more ideas.