Remote teaching and digital learning are becoming more utilized and even the norm in some locations. Online education presents unique challenges for teachers to keep students engaged and interacting with you and the lessons. Parents and teachers both worry about students falling behind and losing the quality of education outside of the physical space.
As a teacher, it’s critical to keep your students engaged and interested in daily assignments. In-person classrooms are reasonably free from distraction, and students get more one-on-one time with their teacher. With digital learning, there are distractions to contend with in the home, technology issues, and a lack of individual attention to students who need it.
Let’s take a look at some tips to keep your students engaged and even excited about learning.
Be realistic about the challenges of each student while learning online. Talk to parents or the student to understand their unique situation.
A few things to consider are:
Once you identify each student’s challenges, you have the information needed to create engaging content for all students and ensure they are excited to hop online.
Just like in-person classes, you can split students into groups to work together. Creating these breakout sessions creates social interaction, and students can help their peers with any difficulties they experience. A few examples of breakout sessions you can incorporate are:
Remember to frequently check in on students in the breakout rooms to make sure they stay on track. Keep the time for breakouts between three and five minutes to cut down on distraction and chatter.
If it’s possible, keep your instruction time short and allow students more breaks. Even if the break is to work with another student or two or log off for a bit to relax, giving them some time away from the main lesson helps combat boredom and fidgeting.
Keep the chunks of time to 20 or 30 minutes. The length of time and number of breakouts or breaks depend on the age and class you’re teaching.
Even if you can shorten the meeting time, using games and music create a moment to relax and have fun while still learning. Most online learning systems provide games for students to play that are related to your lessons.
YouTube is a great resource to find music that can be used during lessons. Getting students to interact with you and each other is key to the success of digital learning.
The best way to check learning retention is to get students to share what they know about a subject and how they feel about it. Online platforms provide great ways to encourage creative ways of expressing what they’ve learned.
For a history, social studies, or English assignment, have students create a Podcast recording of what they know on a subject. Direct them to talk as if they’re teaching their classmates about the topic. In addition to podcasts, most online platforms have a whiteboard simulator. Give students the reins and have them draw a specific scientific concept or math assignment.
While using journals may seem like something done only in-person, it can be translated to an online format. Have students submit a journal entry at the end of a lesson. They can give a summary or identify the main idea of the subject.
This can also be done as a discussion board entry for required reading or other offline tasks assigned. Review the answers and open it up for discussion the next time you meet for class!
Online learning is challenging at best, and it can feel overwhelming when you’re trying to teach large classes. Avoid teacher burnout and feeling at a loss for interactive ways to teach your students.
At DeAlba Math Center, we are passionate about creating products and services that facilitate the ability to reach the Math STAAR performance level of each school. No matter if your goal is to educate an entire campus, a grade, or a specific group of students to master or meet their performance category, DeAlba has a program designed for you.
We strongly believe that all students and teachers can reach their highest potential when they have the appropriate support network! Contact us, and let’s discuss the products available to meet your needs.
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