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Teaching online

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Useful tips for teaching online.

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As an unprecedented virus makes its way around the world playing havoc with teachers' schedules, educators are looking into how to use technology as a way of filling the gap left by the closure of many schools. If you're one of them then the first question you need to ask yourself is do you want to fill that gap in a synchronous or asynchronous way. Or in other words, do you want to use online teaching to get the class together at the same time in a virtual classroom (synchronous) or are will you be sending out work to the students to do in their own time and report back (asynchronous). In this post, I'll give you some advice about getting started synchronously.

Choosing a platform to communicate with your students

The first question is probably what software are you going to use. There are many platforms to choose from, each with their own advantages and disadvantages, and going over each would make for a very long post. Given that you probably need to move quickly don't have much time for training, I imagine you need something relatively simple. You could, for example, simply use Skype; it allows for video, text chat, screen sharing, and recording. Additional features like 'meet now' would allow you to put all your students in one group. The downside though is that not everyone uses Skype and it can lead to the sharing of contact details.

If your school uses Google Classroom then you can use Google Hangouts which you will find as part of that. Zoom, a platform many schools I've been working with have turned to this week, is free to use for 40 minutes but for large classes, a school will need paid accounts. One advantage of it is that people simply click on a link to join, and it has a feature called breakout rooms to use for pair and group work, plus you can make different 'rooms' useful for different classes. What I like about Zoom is that it has so much support online that it is easy to get started. I am not endorsing any of these platforms, in particular, just pointing out that they're free. There are many more but whichever you choose, first and foremost in your mind will be "what best fits the needs of my students?"

Additional technology you'll need

Aside from an online teaching platform, what else do you need? Well, a good internet connection helps. These days we are all used to WiFi and this will usually do, but if you can attach your computer to a cabled network this will make for much better stability. Bear in mind also that, depending on your countries situation, the internet is getting heavily used. If everyone is confined to their homes then naturally they're all online and this can cause a bit of slow down here and there.

Your computer probably already has a built-in camera and you'll need that as students will want to see you. Will you want to see them? If so, then they will need cameras too. However, bear in mind it is the camera that takes up a lot of the bandwidth in a connection so too many cameras could lead to issues. As well as seeing you, students will need to hear you and you hear them. While computers have built-in mics, I strongly recommend you use a headset. The one you got with your mobile phone will do the trick. The advantages of headsets are two-fold; the mic is closer to your mouth and more importantly everyone wearing headphones will limit the amount of feedback that can be caused by everyone having a mic on.

Getting set up to teach your first online teaching lesson

My final tip for getting started is to consider where you are going to teach from. As many of you are possibly being confined to homes, think about where you are going to sit. You need to be away from distractions such as pets or kids. Being on camera you also need to make sure that what's behind you doesn't give away anything private about you. Finally, you need to make sure that your chosen location has a good light source.

Once you're set up and ready to go, take some time to have a play around your platform. Push some buttons, see what things do. Don't be afraid, it's pretty hard to break an online classroom. You can also use your platform to meet up with your colleagues. Not only will this give you an idea of what's it like to have a class but working together lets you share advice. You can set each other quizzes to test how well you can do things, i.e. 'how do you turn on the mic', 'can you show how to use the whiteboard' and so on. My one extra tip here is don't try and learn everything in one go. Keep the first lessons as simple as you can.

From this not only will you feel more confident but you'll also be to help students when they first come to the platform. Additionally, if you write down some of the answers you can turn them into a 'getting started' information sheet that you can send to students. It can also help you come up with some classroom rules. For example, when you're not speaking turn off your mic or, if you want to speak, put up your hand first.
Get practical tips for planning your online language lessons in part 2 of my online teaching guide here!
Please visit our Learn at Home page to find online teaching resources and activities to help teachers, parents and students get the most out of learning at home:

Shaun Wilden is the Academic Head of training and development for the International House World Organisation and a freelance teacher, teacher trainer and materials writer. He currently specialises in technology and language teaching, especially in the area of mobile learning. His latest book " Mobile Learning " was published in 2017 by OUP. He is a trustee of IATEFL and also on the committee of the Learning technologies special interest group. He makes the TEFL commute podcast for teachers.

Categories: Multimedia & Digital | Tags: Online learning, Shaun Wilden, Teaching online, Technology | Permalink.

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Online Teaching Part 1: Getting Started | Shaun Wilden | OUP

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As an unprecedented virus makes its way around the world playing havoc with teachers' schedules, educators are looking into how to use technology as a way of filling the gap left by the closure of many schools.

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Practical tips

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Getting started

When it comes to planning your first lesson remember 'less is more.' Since it's likely to be the first online lesson for you and your students, things will probably take longer than you think. As good as online teaching is at bringing people together, there are often little niggly issues, but don't panic as this is quite normal. For example, some can't easily connect to the room; students can't hear you and so on. If it is the very first lesson, then dedicate most of it to getting to grips with the platform. In future lessons always plan an activity at the start of the lesson that isn't crucial to the lesson as a whole - this activity can 'buy' the time needed to make sure everyone has connected and issues with audio etc. are ironed out.

Online teaching activities to include

As your students are likely to have a coursebook, don't be afraid to use it. Obviously, things need a little adaptation to the online environment. For example, I perhaps wouldn't get everyone online just to do a coursebook reading. Instead, I would ask them to do it before the lesson or for homework. Listening should work the same way. Most platforms allow you to share your sound, so rather than press play on the classroom device, simply press play on your computer.

Teaching grammar or vocabulary can be done using the coursebook, whiteboard or a PowerPoint. Many online teachers I know also screen share Google docs or Microsoft OneNote files that get students working collaboratively. By giving them the link, and then using screen share to display, students can see each other's work. That said, getting the student to write on paper and hold it up to the screen is also very effective. Remember if the camera is on they can see you, so this allows you to use typical teaching tools such as flashcards by simply hold it up to the camera for all to see.

Managing student feedback

One of the trickier things is checking answers or doing feedback. This is where the 'Hands up' function helps. For gap fills, get them to write on the whiteboard or annotate a slide, or type their answers into the chatbox. Try to avoid situations where just one student is talking for any length of time. When this happens in your usual classroom, students switch off, and this is amplified online.

If you're going to do pair work or group work then put the students in breakout rooms. These are spaces within a room that allow people to talk without anyone else hearing often when you activate them the software automatically allocates people into a room so saving you time. Therefore you switch on the function, press the button and off they go into pairs. Now you can jump in and out of their spaces to monitor them just as you would in your usual classroom. Well okay... you wouldn't jump in and out but you see what I mean.

Managing expectations for your first online class

My final advice would be to you as the teacher. For many of us, it's hard to remember what we felt like when we first started teaching but your first lesson online is going to feel a bit like that. When I am training new teachers, one of the things they seem to dread is silence and when we move online this fear comes back, but silence is fine. There is nothing wrong with setting the students a task from the coursebooks and you switching off your mic and camera while they do it. It's a chance for you to collect your thoughts and probably take a much-needed sip of water. Likewise, timing is going feel odd so don't worry about getting through your whole plan each time. Plans, be it for an online class or face to face, are just guides anyway.

All the skills and confidence you have built up over the years will feel a little compromised in this new online world. But don't panic, it is the norm. Don't chastise yourself that things could have gone smoother in that first lesson; it may be true but remember things probably didn't go perfectly in that very first lesson face to face either. However, after a few lessons, everything began to feel natural, just as it will in this new environment. Good luck and don't forget to wash your hands.

Please visit our Learn at Home page to find online teaching resources and activities to help teachers, parents and students get the most out of learning at home:
For more tips on getting started with Online Teaching see Part 3 of our Online Teaching series.
Shaun Wilden is the Academic Head of training and development for the International House World Organisation and a freelance teacher, teacher trainer and materials writer. He currently specialises in technology and language teaching, especially in the area of mobile learning. His latest book " Mobile Learning " was published in 2017 by OUP. He is a trustee of IATEFL and also on the committee of the Learning technologies special interest group. He makes the TEFL commute podcast for teachers.

Categories: Multimedia & Digital, Professional Development | Tags: Lesson planning, lesson plans, Online learning, Online teaching, Shaun Wilden, Technology | Permalink.

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Online Teaching Part 2: Practical Tips For English Language Lessons | OUP

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When it comes to planning your first lesson remember 'less is more.' Since it's likely to be the first online lesson for you and your students, things will probably take longer than you think. As good as online teaching is at bringing people together, there are often little niggly issues, but don't panic as this is quite normal.

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How to motivate students

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Online teaching has been becoming more and more prominent in recent years, but for many of us, we've been suddenly thrown into it due to the Coronavirus outbreak. The conversation usually starts with which apps and platforms to use, but it's important to remember these are only tools; how you use them is what makes or breaks the class. Once you've chosen your software, it's all about keeping the students engaged and willing to work together online. Here are a few online teaching tips to get you started.

Ease students into working online

With a new online class, don't throw them into a digital project straight away. We need to make sure that the students can use the software before doing any substantial learning tasks. But let's be honest, most of us don't read through instruction manuals, let alone remember anything from then. Instead, design some language tasks that have a duel aim of introducing the platforms as well.

Using a message board to communicate? Use an 'order the instructions' reading task for how to post to it, and then ask them to post their answers on the message board.

Using 'break out rooms'? Ask the students to quickly go into break out room and answer a short 'getting to know you' or 'catching-up' questionnaire with their partner

Using email to communicate? Start off with a quick introduction or sharing of what you've been doing since you last saw each other and make sure they're remembering to reply all (or not!)

Raise hand function in your webinar platform? Play a quick 'Raise your hand if...' warmer ("Raise your hand if you like coffee" "Raise your hand if you got up before 7 am") at the start of the lesson

These tasks have clear language aims so the students are still motivated to complete them. The real objective though is getting students used to the systems. If you don't make sure that they can use the systems early, it'll become a distraction later and get in the way of their learning as you move onto more complex activities.

Build their confidence online

One of the great features of online teaching is that many people feel more confident to speak out. For many standing in front of a group of people and talking is their worst nightmare, but those same people might be quite happy to post on Twitter for the whole world to see.

But, especially in the early stages, it can be easy to damage this. Without face-to-face interactions, criticism can be harsh and encouraging smiles can be missing. Be liberal with your praise and clear with your suggestions.

Use a mixture of public and private praise; a short "Well done with..." instant message can go a long way for boosting confidence.

Avoid correcting in public during the beginning stages of a course (on the spot corrections can be sent as a private message).

Encourage interaction on the message board by setting tasks that require students to comment on posts: find someone who used a word you don't know and ask them what it means, or tell two people why you liked their post (and make sure you are as well!)

Make sure you've introduced appropriate etiquette for your students to use online. Simple things like using an emoticon after peer correcting or giving suggestions can soften the tone.

Provide clear instructions

Giving clear instructions may sound obvious, but because it's a lot harder to monitor your students during online lessons, clear instructions become even more critical during an online class. Take your time setting up activities to avoid the loss of motivation that comes from students feeling like they wasted time doing something wrong.

1. Tell the students the objective of the activity. Keep it short and straightforward and aim for a sentence: "let's circle five unknown words"; "Let's brainstorm ideas for our poster."

2. Demonstrate the activity. If possible, show the students an example of the activity being done and 'think out loud' as you do it: "Here's a word I don't know, it's before a noun so it's an adjective..."

3. Show and say the instructions step by step. Recap the instructions step by step, ideally as bullet points. Keep your language short and sweet.

4. Check they understand before starting. Ask some questions to make sure they're clear: "How long do you have?" "Where do you post your answers?" You can set questions to the whole group to quickly make sure they know what to do and help recap for those who might not (websites like kahoot.com can be great for this).

Please visit our Learn at Home page to find online teaching resources and activities to help teachers, parents and students get the most out of learning at home.
For more tips on getting started with Online Teaching see Part 1 of our Online Teaching series.
David Stevenson is originally from the UK but has been working in Education in China for the past ten years. He is the Senior Professional Development Manager at Oxford University Press, Mainland China and his particular areas of interest are developing student autonomy with young learners and helping teachers take research and apply it to their classrooms.

Categories: Multimedia & Digital, Professional Development | Tags: David Stevenson, Engagement, Online learning, Online teaching, Technology | Permalink.

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Online Teaching Part 3: Tips to Engage and Motivate Students | OUP

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Online teaching has been becoming more and more prominent in recent years, but for many of us, we've been suddenly thrown into it due to the Coronavirus outbreak. The conversation usually starts with which apps and platforms to use, but it's important to remember these are only tools; how you use them is what makes or breaks the class.

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Distance Teaching and Learning: Useful Tips for Making it Work

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Distance Teaching and Learning: Useful Tips for Making it Work

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It's a series of videos

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Distance Teaching and Learning: Useful Tips for Making it Work with Dr Ken Beatty