Did you know that around 37% of American students will be attending online classes this school year?
More and more teachers are being pressed with the pressures of virtual teaching. For traditional teachers, this can make connecting with students a challenge.
Luckily, there are plenty of ways to tap into digital learning resources.
We’re here to fill you in. Keep reading below to learn three ways you can improve your distance teaching performance!
Make Your Content Mobile-Friendly
The majority of students these days are extremely tuned in to their cellphones. It’s important to make your distance education materials mobile-friendly.
It’s especially important because some students may not always have access to a computer. Making teaching materials accessible over the phone will make it easy for students to stay up to date with assignments and study topics.
Many classroom communication programs also rely on mobile apps. It’s important to create a technologically inclusive learning environment, as each distance learner’s situation will be different from one another.
Organize Your Distance Teaching Methods
While distance teaching may seem straightforward, it requires just as much time and planning as traditional teaching. You’ll have to organize your teaching methods in a completely new fashion—traditional lesson plans aren’t enough to maintain a virtual teaching environment.
First of all, you have to dedicate time to understanding the digital software you plan to use. You have to be familiar with it, while also ensuring it’s accessible enough for students.
Ideally, you should use a variety of learning tools to appeal to all types of learners. Some students may be receptive to traditional lectures, while others require more interactive methods of learning.
Along with organizing your learning tools, you must also track your progress. Using teacher evaluation software helps teachers and their districts plan meetings, fill out forms and rubrics, and share feedback in real-time. Connecting with your fellow teachers is critical—it will give you new ideas for your own digital lesson plans and create a sense of community.
Teaching to Maintain Engagement
Distance teaching relies on video tutorials and lengthy digital presentations and documents. In order to keep the attention of your students, you have to present engaging content.
Experts recommend keeping content bite-sized—videos should be kept around six minutes long. Shorter videos will also force you to hone in on the most important points of each lesson.
When presenting material to your students, you must offer opportunities for them to participate and engage with the content. Use a variety of tools, from discussion-centric programs like Flipgrid to game-based tools like Kahoot!
Along with assignments and learning games, make sure it’s easy to contact you. In order to engage your students, it’s important to reach out to them too. Make time to reach out to individual students to ensure they’re keeping up virtually.
Mastering Distance Teaching
It can be difficult to master the challenges that distance teaching presents. However, distance teaching can also offer a new perspective and collection of tools for teachers and students alike. The guide above will help you as you improve your distance teaching methods!
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