Hints and tips for remote teaching
This month's top tip for encouraging student engagement: content
content
This month's top tip for encouraging student engagement:
Are you planning your synchronous teaching sessions for this semester? Are you wondering how to make them more engaging for students? Webex Meetings has a breakout room feature which allows you to break up your cohort into smaller groups for more indepth discussions or collaborative work.
For more information on how to set up and use breakout rooms in Webex Meetings, check out our two new videos in this folder with Webex resources in the Supporting Learning Online module.
Below are some hints and tips to consider if you are teaching remotely, particularly if you have had to make a move from face-to-face teaching unexpectedly due to the current situation.
Wellbeing is at the top of the list as it is paramount that we all look after each other as we get used to the latest restrictions.
Well being - for you and your students
Well being - for you and your students
- Look after yourself! Here are some links to articles about home working/working remotely:
- There is advice for students in this twitter feed:
- Remote working: set yourself up for success. Remember you have access to LinkedIn Learning (formerly Lynda.com), here’s a great collection to dip into:
- Ok is fantastic – don’t strive for perfection in your teaching during an emergency.
Motivation - keep your students engaged
Motivation - keep your students engaged
- Set up a discussion board and encourage students to post to it. Think about awarding a Brightspace badge for everyone’s first post.
- Challenge students to create a digital artefact e.g. PowerPoint video, based around a learning objective. Can be done individually or in pairs.
- Ask students to use household items e.g. Lego, utensils, recycling, to represent a concept, take a photo and post it to a discussion.
- Find some OERs, interesting articles, or websites, post them to the discussion board and ask students to find and post at least two more of their own.
- Set students a challenge, for example an informational treasure hunt with Brightspace badges as prizes. For more information and ideas, refer to our Brightsapce Awards guidance.
- Encourage your students to support their peers. Here is some useful Peer Support information provided by the Student Engagement Team that you may consider directing your students to.
- Consider using ClickView television recordings. ClickView allows you to create interactive videos with quiz questions or annotations. Check out this webinar from 26 March 2020 to hear more about how to keep students engaged when they are learning remotely. For more general information about ClickView, refer to the UHI ClickView help pages.
- Work on making sure that students have a sense of belonging while they are learning online. For more information check out QAA Scotland's ‘Developing a Sense of Belonging in Online Distance Learning Toolkit’. The university, through the LTA, developed this open toolkit in conjunction with colleagues at University of Dundee, Edinburgh Napier University, Open University in Scotland and Queen Margaret University. It contains a range of activities, exemplars and guidelines for supporting cohorts of online and distance learners, including examples and a case study from UHI.
Asynchronous (teaching and learning not all at the same time)
Asynchronous (teaching and learning not all at the same time)
- Take full advantage of the University’s learning environment, Brightspace. If you have never used it, there should be a teaching space ready and waiting for you when you log in to Brightspace. See our Quick start guide to get started.
- Everyone doesn’t have to be online at the same time, remember to acknowledge and accommodate a range of personal circumstances and allow students to learn at times that suit them.
- Ask students to create a quiz or set an activity for their fellow students that will help them to get to grips with a key concept for example - give them a list to choose from.
- Ask your students to contribute to a Brightspace glossary. (Guidance coming soon)
- In addition to the activities mentioned above, please refer to the LTA's Benchmarks for the Use of Technology for Learning and Teaching. These benchmarks provide guidance and exemplars for the effective use of the university’s Virtual Learning Environment Brightspace and other technologies for learning and teaching in pedagogically sound and evidence-based ways. Download the Benchmarks document from the website to find a range of tried and tested activities for online learning and teaching.
The new UHI Learning and Teaching Enhancement Strategy 2022-27 was launched in autumn 2022. Learning and Teaching is currently working on updating the Benchmarks for the use of Technology in Learning and Teaching which are based on the Learning and Teaching Enhancement strategy. This guidance refers to the previous version of the Benchmarks and will be updated during the current academic year. Until this guidance is updated to reflect the new Benchmarks please feel confident to continue using it.
Synchronous (teaching and learning all at the same time)
Synchronous (teaching and learning all at the same time)
- Keep synchronous teaching to the minimum, check out the alternatives. Please also refer to the LTA's Benchmarks for the Use of Technology for Learning and Teaching. These benchmarks provide guidance and exemplars for the effective use of the university’s Virtual Learning Environment Brightspace and other technologies for learning and teaching in pedagogically sound and evidence-based ways. Download the Benchmarks document from the website to find a range of tried and tested activities for online learning and teaching.
The new UHI Learning and Teaching Enhancement Strategy 2022-27 was launched in autumn 2022. Learning and Teaching is currently working on updating the Benchmarks for the use of Technology in Learning and Teaching which are based on the Learning and Teaching Enhancement strategy. This guidance refers to the previous version of the Benchmarks and will be updated during the current academic year. Until this guidance is updated to reflect the new Benchmarks please feel confident to continue using it. - Don’t try to replicate what you do face-to-face, long online lectures can be exhausting for both students and staff.