6 points to take into consideration to create and teach a virtual class

COVID-19 pandemic has forced several industries to embrace remote working;  some were already familiar with such way of working, but in other cases, like in the education sector, the shift has been of almost 180 degrees. Entire educational establishments require now to migrate to digital platforms that allow them to continue with the educational programs, remotely. 

For many professors this has been a big challenge, since it is not only about teaching a class from another place and with the help of a digital mean, but it also involves the ability to find ideal solutions to ensure the quality and efficiency of the classes, and to implement new teaching methods and strategies. For said reasons, some digital companies, promoters of digital development and transformation such as Ikusi, in collaboration with Cisco, commit to offering the best tools and to sharing strategies for the management of digital platforms. 

In the case of the education sector, we offer solutions to teach virtual classes through platforms that facilitate remote communication and allow academic deans, academic coordinators and professors to hold sessions or meetings with more than 10 people or attend large school events, such as ceremonies or conferences. However, it is strongly recommended to take into consideration some tips to design a virtual course where the traditional face-to-face learning methods must be adapted to virtual classrooms. 

1. Questions. It should be taken into consideration that in a virtual class the visual panorama is not the same as the one of a traditional class; so, when a question arises, it is recommended to ask to those who are going to listen the question to deactivate their microphones and to the student who is going to make the question to make his/her question or write down his/her doubts through the chat. 

2. File sharing. During traditional classes, class material was usually shared physically; now professors have the possibility to share files or documents by publishing them on a platform, which may be entered by the students or participants before, during or after the class. 

3. Interaction. It is important to keep constant interaction between students, in order to hold their attention and facilitate the learning process, especially in case of young students. Active participation can be achieved through general questions made by professor to students who can mark their answers on a virtual whiteboard, anonymously. 

4. Participation. In the last educational programs, participation was essential to acquire skills. Now, in a virtual class, the professor may ask students to write examples in a chat where everyone can view and make comments thereon, in real time. 

5. Action. Another well-known strategy, including in oratory techniques, is movement. A virtual class may be boring if all the time the group is watching small boxes on the screen in which the professor and classmates appear; it is therefore recommended that professors interact in writing with students, either on a physical blackboard or live, on the virtual whiteboard, as well as dictate instructions to keep the group active (and not just listening) during the class. 

6. Coexistence. Distance learning may reduce interaction between groups’ members; a strategy to keep “school coexistence” and reinforce the learning process is to invite students to form groups within virtual spaces, debate or carry out team activities and finally share their learning with the others and the professor. 

Another point to be taken into consideration concerns the time required to prepare virtual classes which may be higher than in case of traditional classes. It is therefore advisable for teachers to plan their class in advance as well as being creative as much as possible, including everyone in class debates, addressing as many students as possible and reinforcing the courses with homework that saves time during the virtual sessions. 

If you still can’t find the ideal tool to facilitate the interaction or an easy file sharing or group creation, live chats and participation, or that ensures the ability to work on a secure platform and much more, get a free trial for a limited time at https://soluciones.ikusiredes.com/educacionvirtual .