Tips to Keep Students Engaged in Online Learning
With the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, the learning has been affected across the globe. All the classes and teaching processes are online now. This has suddenly brought a huge change at the teachers and students end. Reading in a confined environment has become tiring and mundane after such a long time.
Apart from being mundane and less interesting than the physical classes, the online classes also deprive students from the healthy discussion and peer-to-peer interaction. Further, there is not even a temporary deadline for the COVID-19 pandemic. There are many reputed coaching institutes in Dubai that have an experience spanning over decades. Hence, there is an indefinite time ahead for which classes are going to be online only.
All of this amounts to a lack of engagement at the students end and the teachers cannot simply rely upon the online activities to engage the students. The situation is even morose for the students preparing for higher education exams, admissions, or pursuing higher education courses. For such students, discussions, study groups and doubt-resolution sessions are a must. And, the online classes are lacking in many areas starting from the network issues.
In the following discussion, we are going to share some expert tips to keep the students engaged in online learning. So, read them carefully and follow them to make your online classes more interesting and engaging for the students.
Before we begin, we want to point out that this write-up aims at the students pursuing higher education and the ones that are preparing for higher education exams such as the ACT, SAT and UCAT etc. Now, read on!
Table of Contents
Online Learning Tips for Students
1. Make the virtual classes like the real classes
Until or unless you don’t keep the rules of attending classes the same, it is hard for the students to be motivated and engaged. You, as a teacher, have to ensure that students follow the dressing conventions, personal hygiene conventions and discipline properly.
When all the participants are equally motivated for the online classes, only then they will feel engaged. Speaking with turns, forming online groups and giving group assignments like always – the teachers have to think of a lot many things so that the students become more welcoming to this change.
2. Setting the goals and targets, and achieving them
Online tutoring has grown in many countries, including Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and the UAE. Online tutoring in Dubai provides supplemental academic help outside of regular school hours. The teachers set some particular goals and targets for every passing week. With the physical classes, you can take tests every fortnight or even monthly. This is because you are in touch with every student and can take note of their involvement and class performance accordingly.
However, in the virtual classes, you have to ensure their class performance via measurable indicators. There are many apps and tools that you can use for taking online tests, quizzes and exams etc. You can also take interactive tests with audio-visual aids for making them even more engaging.
When the students are evaluated in a short time and are given credits for their performance, they get a sense of heroism from their studies. This way, your students will stay engaged in online classes.
3. Time management is a must for the success of online classes
The success of the entire online teaching system depends on how well time is managed. Lay some basic rules for the timeline of online classes and make sure everyone adheres to them. Keep a few minutes for greetings and a few minutes for doubts. Keep your sessions short and engaging.
Discuss the previously-covered topics with the students in a separate class. Don’t indulge or favour wayward discussions as they kill the time. Do not overdo the discipline so that the students find virtual classes flexible.
[Read: 10 Top Free Online Courses With Printable Certificates 2020 ]
4. Discuss previous years papers
The students that are preparing for the entrance exams and higher education exams put a large value into the previous years papers. Generally, the teachers don’t discuss these papers in the physical classes in a regular manner, and the students also don’t miss them. But, when you are giving online classes, you should discuss a few questions on the recently covered concepts every week.
This is one of the best ways to keep the students engaged in the virtual classes, and that too constantly. When the students know that they will have to solve the previously asked questions on the concepts being taught, they pay more attention and stay focused.
5. Make sure you have the right infrastructure
As a teacher that cares for the kind of education he or she imparts to the students, you have to be wary of the resources and infrastructure you have. Have a good internet connection and invest in tools such as education hardware, online learning management systems and boards or charts for teaching.
When you invest such efforts, your students stay engaged in the classes and take notes as well. It is a well-known saying that you must play the part to be the hero. So, in order to make sure your online classes are a hit and a success, you must have the right resources and the right infrastructure.
6. Active participation from both sides
Earlier, we discussed the way it is important for a teacher to put efforts into the online classes. However, the students should also be invested in them for the best results. So, motivate your students to be actively involved in online classes. Organise discussions, interactive sessions and also do the online presentations in which every student has to teach or discuss one topic with the entire class.
All these activities will keep the students engaged for sure and they will look forward to their classes.
This brings us to the conclusion of our discussion. We hope that all our readers benefit from this and draw thoughtful takeaways from here.
Always remember, the online classes are a success only if both the parties are equally involved and engaged. So, make sure that both you and your students are involved in the classes to get the best value out of them.
Thanks for Reading!