Virtual Classrooms
Virtual classrooms: a
quick-start guide
You
are here:
Current
events are forcing colleges and universities worldwide to move classes online.
Despite the difficult global situation, advances in streaming and video tech
have changed the way remote learning happens. With minimal
preparation a virtual classroom can be set up easily, allowing students to
watch video lectures as live streams or on-demand video.
This
guide is perfect if you are:
·
Looking for help on how to turn an in-person class
into an online class – fast.
·
Trying to figure out how to best reach your
students during social distancing.
·
Researching options for getting the best results
from your virtual class.
·
Searching for ideas on how to configure or improve
your online video lectures.
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There
are many options for an instructor planning to record or stream classes online.
We’ll review three of them, in increasing order of complexity. Don’t let the
prospect of more complexity intimidate you though. After reading this guide
even an inexperienced instructor or professor will be ready to deliver an
engaging online video lesson.
Some
schools already have lecture halls equipped with video recording and streaming
equipment, making the experience as simple as walking into your usual classroom
and pressing a button. Others might have a Learning Management System (LMS) deployed,
which hosts video lectures and live streams automatically. And other schools
may have spare video equipment that could be used by instructors to get online
classrooms going. But even without those tools a virtual classroom can be ready
to go in half an hour.
The
first solution we’re presenting is perfect for camera-shy lecturers who rely on
a slideshow presentation for their classes.
For
lecturers needing to get their class online in a hurry, this setup could be the
best solution. This needs very little in terms of setup or equipment making it
well-suited for the technophobic academic. All that’s required for a screen
capture setup is a computer and microphone. For people using modern laptop
computers the internal microphone is more than enough to start streaming
quickly.
This
setup features a slideshow presentation – like the kind your class may already
be using – broadcast on screen, while the audio is simply the lecturer’s own
voice.
You’ll
need the following:
1.
Software that can capture what’s
happening on your computer and stream it to an online video service.
Open
Broadcaster Software (OBS) is just one of many programs that
can do this. Other options include FlashBack Express and Apowersoft Screen Recorder but OBS is
highly recommended as it comes from a trusted developer and is free to use.
2.
An online video service that can host
your video lecture.
You’ll
need a Content Delivery Network (CDN)
to host your virtual class and where your students will view your virtual
classroom. For instructors in a hurry, sites like Facebook or YouTube can work
just fine, but those platforms lack the advanced features of dedicated
education video hosting services like Kaltura or Panopto.
Once
you’ve picked your screen capture software and a content delivery network you
can start setting up your classroom.
Open
your streaming software and add your computer’s own screen as a video source (Display
Capture >in OBS). Then, you must also add an audio source. Select
your computer’s internal microphone or a USB microphone (if available).
Log
into your Facebook or YouTube account and select the button that indicates you
want to start a live stream. The site will provide you a “stream key,” a
unique code that connects your YouTube or Facebook account to your screen
capture and live streaming software.
Enter
the stream key into OBS and select Start Streaming to begin
your virtual classroom live stream.
Just
need to record a video of your lecture? Instead of pressing the Start
Streaming button, you simply hit Start Recording. When
you’re happy with your recording, you can upload the finished video to the site
of your choice.
Providing
the lecture as a live stream provides a great deal of value. Students watching
live can ask questions that you can answer in real-time. This kind of live
feedback can help you get a sense of what’s working and what isn’t directly
from your class.
This
setup is a bit more involved and requires the lecturer to put shyness aside and
appear on screen. A simulated classroom tries to replicate what a student would
see in-person, arranging a camera some distance away from an instructor and
whiteboard or blackboard. This may be the ideal setup for an instructor who
wants to disrupt their workflow as little as possible; however, it involves a
bit more work than a simple screen capture setup.
There’s
no ideal distance between the instructor and camera as each camera is slightly
different. Aim to get as much of the whiteboard in the shot as possible for a medium-wide shot of the instructor.
While a high-quality webcam can do the job, inferior ones are grainy, and the
result is unclear video . If you have a spare digital camera, many modern
mirrorless or DSLR-style cameras can capture HD video, but you will also need a
capture card to send that video to a computer in real-time.
AV.io,
the easiest way to capture HD video
The
easiest way to send video from your camera to a computer, the AV.io is counted
on for its ease of use and reliability. That’s why it’s found in live streaming
studios and medical clinics worldwide. Just plug it in and start capturing
high-quality video in full HD.
The
distance from the camera also means you’ll need some kind of microphone closer
to the instructor to ensure clean audio. A USB microphone could be used here,
but a clip-on lavalier mic delivers the best results in this kind of situation.
Using
a laptop’s webcam also makes it difficult for teachers to read student
questions or comments. One option is to keep a phone nearby with a group chat
involving the class.
Both
YouTube and Facebook allow users to go live directly from an iOS or Android
device, which means a smartphone could be used in this situation with a smartphone lav mic providing clean audio.
You should keep in mind; however, that this kind of continuous use drains the
battery and is not a long-term solution.
People
with video production experience and instructors who want higher quality video,
should consider making the leap to a multiple-camera setup. Though this might
sound intimidating, it can be done easily with a bit of planning.
While
you’re still working with just one audio source, this configuration has two (or
more) video sources. Those sources could be two separate cameras or a computer
screen and camera. Before the video goes online, a switcher is
needed to integrate those audio and video signals.
The
advantage of this setup is that it can provide a level of detail and engagement
much greater than any single camera setup. Labs that involve fine detail work
can have one camera focused on the workbench, and switch to that signal to give
students the detail they need. Math lectures with complex work on the
blackboard could benefit from a dedicated close-up of equations as the
professor is explaining them.
OBS
offers some basic switching features, as do many other streaming programs.
Before your lecture begins, configure each video input in your switcher and
program the video layouts you want students to see. Common layouts include
picture-in-picture or split screen, depending on what you feel is best suited
for your class.
But for the most
reliability and simplicity, a dedicated hardware switcher delivers the best
results. Pearl Mini can handle multiple cameras through its HDMI, SDI, and USB
connectors, and stream your video directly to sites like YouTube and Facebook.
Pearl is also fully integrated with Kaltura and Panopto, for schools that have
already deployed those systems.
Pearl
Mini makes lecture capture easy
Whether
you’re going live or recording your class for students to review later, Pearl
Mini makes the process as simple as pressing a button. Learn how Pearl systems
are deployed in leading academic settings across the world.
The
best virtual classes still require instructors to support student learning,
just like any in-person class. Office hours are not going to be viable, so
consider setting up virtual office hours where students can ask questions or
talk freely about the course content. Some professors have found success
hosting online office hours on Skype, YouTube, and even Twitch.
You
also won’t be able to see your class react to your lessons in real-time, so
keeping tabs on struggling students will require more effort. Dedicated
learning CMS’s like Kaltura and Panopto allow
you to insert video quizzes, to track who’s keeping up and who isn’t. Even
without these features you can still reach out to students individually or as a
group over social media apps like Facebook Messenger, Skype or Slack.
Also
consider setting up a social space in one of those messaging apps so students
still get the social benefits of offline classes. While class time isn’t for
idle chatter, study groups and note-swapping arrangements sometimes come out of
the social interactions that aren’t always available online.
Once you’ve gotten
comfortable, remember that your online classroom’s medium can help support the
message. If you find a video that speaks directly to the topic you’re teaching,
don’t be afraid to introduce it to the class online. Computer science or
technical drawing programs can benefit greatly from screen sharing showing
students exactly how you solve a problem.
The
current global health situation suggests instructors could be giving lectures
to a camera for a while. It’s a good time to look ahead and plan to make
courses as online-friendly as possible. Equipping yourself with the skills to
put a class online will be useful the next time a school closes due to a
blizzard or ice storm.
Even
once the COVID-19 pandemic is over, demand for online learning will continue to
grow. Schools are constantly trying to add more students, and online courses
and diplomas are a critical part of that enrollment push. International and
rural students often face huge cost and travel-related barriers to attending
top schools. Meanwhile, some students have accessibility issues preventing them
from attending classes in-person. Video provides a way for students to tear
down those barriers, with minimal effort and investment.
Is your school
looking at expanding its video and lecture recording capacity? Contact one of
Epiphan’s video experts to learn the options available for schools hoping to live stream classes, record lectures, or better market itself through
video.
The act of transferring knowledge from one person
to another always has some technological aspect to it. We note the beginning of
history as when writing was invented for a very good reason, after all.
As an educator you will likely already be
acquainted with how teaching fundamentally follows alongside technology. From
the first clay tablets to handheld tablet computers, and everything in between
– standardized textbooks, overhead projectors, whiteboards replacing
chalkboards, and smart boards replacing whiteboards – teaching has adapted to
every technological medium it has needed to in order to pass knowledge and
skills from one generation to another.
In the age of social media and the internet,
virtual classrooms are just the next necessary step in that process. So it is
important for the survival of your teaching subject for you to understand and
use this technology in order to effectively get it absorbed in the younger
generations.
How to get started
Before creating a virtual classroom, it’s worth
doing some research on what software solutions are available to you. There is
some importance in selection, because of certain technical and practical
requirements that your individual case may have.
Samba Live is in the goldilocks zone for
institutions like universities. It’s more professional and focused than a
YouTube stream, and it’s not quite as dense as other webinar software solutions.
Modern specialty software solutions that cater to
this need are point-and-click levels of easy for instructors to start with.
Nothing should be unfamiliar to the point of feeling as though you can’t use or
understand the software for what you need.
If you have ever used Skype or FaceTime, you can
take a traditional classroom into a virtual based educational experience for
your students to digest either as a supplement or even as a replacement to the
physical classroom for pupils who can’t physically attend.
Take the first step
Once you’ve found the solution that you want to
use, you will have to make an account with the software provider that you will
be using. From here you’ll have to familiarize yourself with what the platform
can do for you, and importantly, where you can find technical help with any
problems you may encounter when familiarizing yourself with video streaming and
recording.
It’s useful to have access to tech support forums
and platform-specific guides for how to use the platform itself. But beyond
that, it’s supremely helpful to be able to contact an actual person to assist
you if you can’t find what you are looking for on FAQ threads. Samba Live by
Digital Samba has dedicated technical support
staff for university and institutional users, which is a
must-have resource for long-term support.
Set it up
During your research phase, you may want to look
into what types of software requirements or technical limitations that each
solution has. Some will require screen-capture or video streaming software to
be used along side it, like OBS. Others have that built-in (Such as Skype).
Some options will have restrictions and
limitations.
You may have some need, or want to change something
for your audience that may not be available with all platforms. Most of the
time though, what you need are screen-capture, and a live feed from a video
camera in order to present your material.
You may want other options as well, such as recording, polling options, and Q&A – so
make sure that if you want to use those that the platform you select has those
available.
Get a web camera or perhaps several, and make sure
that you have a computer that can handle multiple video feeds. These will
capture your physical presence for your digital audience. Prepare your
presentation material either physically or digitally on your computer, and
dry-run your set-up to make sure that your set-up is what you envisioned.
Go live, for the first time!
Once you are set up with a software platform and
configuration that works for you, the rest quickly becomes second nature. It
really is just like normal instructor led classroom environments.
Education is fundamentally about the sharing of ideas, and ideas
flourish in digital environments. You, as the instructor, will
quickly form productive habits of presenting, recording, and refining the process
in which you teach your students.
Watch your teaching flourish
in the digital landscape
As you refine your process, you will discover how
to leverage all the features of your chosen platform to truly revolutionize
your entire job. Some of these very powerful tools include built-in scheduling,
assignment-management, notifications and updates, back-ups of your live
lessons, and archivable student questions. You can utilize on-screen whiteboard features to
sketch out or explain an abstract concept as intuitively as you would use a
physical whiteboard.
Students will be engaging with your material from
the devices that they are most comfortable with and spend most of the day
using. Your lessons will be as accessible and interactive to them as their
newsfeed. Building the skill-set of conducting a virtual classroom is the
single most important habit to integrate your learning experience into the way
people live today. If that does not happen, then what you have to teach will be
competing against the entire lifestyle of young people today rather than
working with it.
Definition: A virtual
classroom is an online learning environment that allows
teachers and students to communicate, interact, collaborate, explain ideas.
A virtual classroom enables students to access quality teachers anywhere on the planet so long as they both have a reliable internet connection. This can break down most of the common barriers to synchronous learning: cost, distance and timing.
1. Video conferencing ability (so teachers and students can see each other)
2. Audio conferencing(so participants can hear each other)
3. Real-time text chat
4. Interactive online whiteboard (so users can interact on the same online
page).
5. Library of learning materials (essential for providing more structured
lessons)
6. Teacher tools and controls (just like in a physical classroom)
How different is a virtual classroom to a physical classroom?
In many
ways, an online classroom simply mirrors the physical classroom. In a physical
classroom, the student needs to be able to see & hear the teacher, see
& hear the other students, have a good view of the whiteboard and their own
learning materials. In a virtual classroom, a student can see & hear the
teacher via the video/audio stream. The online whiteboard allows teachers to
explain ideas visually and work through exercises collaboratively.
How different is a virtual classroom to a web-conference?
An online
classroom tends to have the important features of a
video-conferencing tool but with additional features important for teachers.
The two key
features that transform the teaching and learning experience are:
1. Interactive online whiteboard
2. Library of learning materials
3. Teacher tools and controls
1 Interactive online whiteboard
Think… what
makes a room a classroom? The whiteboard.
The online
whiteboard is just as important, if not more important, to the online
classroom. Why? A web whiteboard is important because it provides a shared
focus point and enables teachers and students to collaborate on learning
projects. Teachers can structure their lessons by embedding learning materials
(pdf, video, audio files) directly into the whiteboard.
A whiteboard
helps teachers and students get "on the same page". Rather than
annotating (like writing on an interactive overlay), students can
write/type/draw on the actual page and typically save for future review.
Embedding
saved materials into the whiteboard enriches the learning experience,
encourages student participation, makes it more efficient for teachers to
switch between related concepts, engages more of the learner's senses and is
just more fun. These are all important aspects of a
"student-centered" learning approach, proven to be more effective
than the old-school "instructor-led' pedagogy.
In contrast,
most web-conferencing software, encourages "screen-sharing" or the
condition commonly referred to as "death by PowerPoint". If students
wanted a lecture, they would watch the video at their convenience. Educators
need to facilitate and inspire learning which requires a more sophisticated
view of online education.
2 Library of learning materials
In a
physical classroom, you can look around and find textbooks, games, exercises,
templates, worksheets, multimedia resources (print, video, audio).
A
professional teacher needs these in their virtual classroom too. The teacher
needs to be able to upload their digital learning materials to the cloud and
save them for future classes.
This helps
teachers prepare for a class in less time and provide a more structured,
effective class. Most importantly, an online classroom will enable a student
and teacher to get on the same page.
For example,
the teacher can navigate to the exact page in a particular document or even
open a video-resource. The virtual classroom software will ensure the student
is on the same page in that pdf or can sync the video playback.
3 Teacher tools and controls
When a
teacher is in a physical classroom they can use physical location, proximity
and non-verbal body language to control the class. What about in an online
classroom though?
A good
online classroom typically includes a number of important controls for the
teacher: Teacher tools - Text tool, draw tool, eraser, shapes, pen colour, zoom Specialist
teacher tools - Maths tools, instant dictionary, instant verb conjugation tables Save or
record the class or save learning materials for the student to later review
Group class tools - Raise hand tool, breakout rooms for larger groups Control of the student
webcam- Helpful if the student has a poor connection and needs to reduce
internet bandwidth requirements Control of the student mic - Yes, that
means you can finally "mute" your student when required
Virtual
classroom summary For the same reason that in-person teachers prefer to teach
in a physical classroom, rather than a bedroom; a professional online teacher
prefers to teach in a virtual classroom.
A virtual
classroom has the aspects of web-conferencing needed to communicate effectively
from opposite sides of the globe (video/audio conferencing, chat) and also a
virtual whiteboard, library of resources and teacher tools.
The online
whiteboard enables teachers and students to interact much more collaboratively
and not just rely on video/voice.
The saved
library of learning resources enables teachers to access relevant, rich or
structure lesson materials instantly to create a much more dynamic class.
Teacher
tools empower a teacher to control the class and be much more effective online.
If you'd like to see a virtual classroom in action, you're welcome to try ours for free
here.
Teaching
languages online is big business, and many language learning providers now
provide some (or even all) of their classes via videoconferencing.
As an English teacher, you’ll probably have some experience teaching English
online, or at least will have thought about whether to try it out. But can you
be sure that your face-to-face teaching skills will easily translate into the
online environment? If you’re just starting out teaching English, what can you
expect when teaching in a ‘virtual’ classroom? How can you make sure that you
keep learners (particularly groups of learners) engaged, and give them plenty
of opportunity to practice English?
Teaching
online seems like a really attractive option for many teachers. Unfortunately,
teachers find that when they get into the virtual classroom, things don’t
always go as well as they expected. When I started teaching groups of adults
online I was already an experienced face-to-face EFL teacher, and I thought I
knew how to engage students and respond to learners’ needs and interests. My
face-to-face classes had lots of learner interaction and low teacher talking
time. But online I suddenly found myself struggling to get students (particularly
from lower-levels) to take part in speaking activities or respond to me, let
alone interact with each other. I found the radio silence uncomfortable, and my
teacher-talking-time went through the roof as I filled in the silence. What was
going on?
Death to Learner Engagement
One
of the most common media for providing materials for online classes is via a
PowerPoint presentation. They’re easy to create, and can be
uploaded to most online platforms. But you’ll probably have heard
the expression ‘Death by PowerPoint’, and it’s particularly apt for language
teaching. Once teachers have uploaded their presentation to the
videoconferencing platform, there’s an enormous temptation to simply run
through the presentation from start to finish, with little regard for whether
students want or need the content within it.
Of
course, we see the same problem in the face-to-face classroom, with an
inexperienced teacher ploughing willy-nilly through a course book. But the
crucial difference with the online classroom is that teachers usually get far
less direct feedback from their learners on how the lesson is going for them.
Even if your learners have their camera on (which is not always possible due to
the bandwidth needed to run videoconferencing software), it can be really
difficult to know why your learners aren’t saying much. Maybe they don’t
understand what you’re saying, or are confused. Or maybe they think it’s too
easy, so they’re bored (and checking their emails?). Maybe they’ve temporarily
lost their Wi-Fi connection. Whatever the reason, as teachers talk more to fill
the silence, classes become less and less learner-centred. As they have little
control over the content or pace of the class, students switch off and can be
easily distracted by anything else that’s going on around them.
Maximising online interaction
I
began to realise that there was something fundamentally different about
communication in a virtual classroom as compared to a face-to-face classroom.
It’s actually pretty simple. In a physical classroom, you can have as many
people talking at once as people in the room, and pair and group work can be
used to maximize the time your students have to practice speaking in English.
But in a virtual classroom (unless you’re lucky enough to have breakout rooms),
you can only have one person talking at any one time without things getting
pretty messy. The standard pattern of communication therefore ends up being
Teacher asks a question to Student A, Student A responds, Teacher asks a
question to Student B, etc., with very little interaction going on between the
students (see figure 1). The multi-channel face-to-face communication becomes
mono-channel in the Virtual classroom.
Figure
1 Multi- vs. mono-channel
communication (with thanks to Tim Crook)
What can teachers do to maximise interaction?
In
order to get groups of students talking and interacting in your virtual
classroom, you might therefore to need to work a bit harder. But the good news
is that videoconferencing platforms usually have some really great tools you
can use. Here are seven ideas you can take away and use in your online classes.
1.
Set polls and quiz
questions. Many videoconferencing
platforms have an integrating polling function. If they don’t, you can easily
share a weblink to a poll you’ve created. Use polls as a starting point for
discussion, or to check understanding of a language point. And then, crucially,
use the answers your students give to deviate from the PowerPoint – don’t be
afraid to skip what your learners already know!
2.
Use the chat box. The chat function can be a fantastic tool for teachers in the online
classroom. You can use it as a teaching aid to reinforce instructions or
backchannel with a struggling student with private chat. But also think about
how you can integrate the chat function into activities, by getting students to
share answers, opinions, ideas etc.
3.
Write on the board. You’ll often find it’s possible to give students control to write
or highlight on the whiteboard in a videoconferencing session. This can be
great for brainstorming ideas or eliciting vocab, or for getting students to
find mistakes in a text, or identify words.
4.
Use the record function. Set up short speaking activities, and record your learners. Then
listen back to these in class, and get students to engage critically with the
recordings in some way (listening for use of key language, pronunciation, or
whatever your focus is).
5.
Create that information
gap. Remember to make sure
that your activities really are creating some kind of need to communicate
between students – sounds obvious, but the clearer you are about this, the more
interaction you will generate.
6.
Your learners are a
valuable resource! Remember that your
students will come to class with their own ideas, opinions and experiences. Use
this to engage your learners (can they set up the details of a role play to
match a situation they have themselves been in, for example?). Remember too
that you literally have the world at your fingertips, and think about whether
your learners can find resources for the class or during the class by visiting
websites themselves (Discussing their ideal weekend break? Send them to a
website to search and plan a ‘real’ holiday!)
7.
Plan your interaction
patterns. Much more than in a
face-to-face class, you need to plan ahead for each task and think about how
your learners can interact. It might be ‘round robin’, or you might want to
specify tasks. You can also use the private chat to prompt learners to ask each
other questions, and if you’re lucky, you may be able to put learners into
breakout rooms. You can also think about whether you actually need to be there!
Sometimes your learners will talk more freely if you set up the activity, and
then turn your camera off (after having nominated one student to lead the
activity).
In
this photo taken on March 6, 2020, primary school teacher Billy Yeung records a
video lesson for his students who have had their classes suspended due to the
COVID-19 coronavirus, in his empty classroom in Hong Kong. | Photo
Credit: AFP
As a growing number of countries are resorting to
school and university closures, there are some online tools that educators and
students can use to teach and learn virtually.
The World Health Organisation (WHO) declared COVID-19 as a
pandemic on Wednesday. Many schools, colleges and
universities are closing down their premises to reduce the spread of
infections. And many of these educational institutions are increasingly
switching to online instruction.
Harvard University asked its students to not return after the spring
break ending on March 23. It has asked students residing on campus to vacate in
five days and to not return until the end of the semester. During this period,
the Ivy League university plans conduct virtual classes.
Stanford University said in a statement that it will begin its spring
quarter on time, but will use virtual learning instead of in-person classes.
The reaction to COVID-19 is same across many campuses in the U.S. and several
other countries.
ALSO
READ
Thirty-nine countries in Asia, Europe, the Middle East, north America
and South America have announced or enforced school and university closures as
on March 11, according to UNESCO. Twenty-two countries have closed schools
nationwide, impacting about 37.23 lakh children and youth.
As a growing number of countries are resorting to school and university
closures, there are some online tools that educators and students can use to
teach and learn virtually.
Classdojo is a free educational app that enables teachers,
students and parents to interact online. It allows teachers to create a virtual
classroom in which they can share videos and pictures. An account on the app
can be created only by the teacher. The student can access the virtual
classroom with an access code sent by the teacher.
EkStep is an on-demand platform that allows
educators to create, share and distribute free community-sourced educational
content for K-12 class students. The app is loaded with several educational
videos that students can access any time and learn in a self-paced way.
Khan Academy provides complete course material from K-12
that can be accessed by students at their own pace. The app also tracks
student’s progress in each lesson.
LabXchange is a free online platform that brings together
top quality content from diverse sources, including videos, assessments and
simulations. The platform was built in associations with Harvard University
Faculty of Arts and Science
ALSO
READ
Lark is a collaboration package that offers
service to schools free of charge. The package provides 200 GB free storage
space, video-conferencing, messaging service, online interactive and
collaborative document processing for projects, calendar to sync up the
syllabus and workplace to integrate third-party applications.
Dingtalk is a free communication and collaboration
platform that offers video-conferencing, calendar and attendance management and
instant messaging. The app was recently in the news as students, in Wuhan, who
did not want to attend remote classes, tried to boot Dingtalk out of the Play
store by leaving one-star reviews.
How to Start a Profitable Online School in 5 Easy
Steps
Have you been looking at how to start an online school, but you’re not
sure what steps you should take, or if it’s even profitable?
Don’t worry; you’re not alone.
Many people are skeptical before they create an online school. After
all, it’s normal to see success stories and think, “Yeah, but is it going to
work for me?”
You know you’ve got a skill to teach, but there’s the
little feeling in your gut making you doubt yourself.
So let us put your mind at ease…
Right now there are thousands of students in hundreds of
niches hungry to learn from a teacher like you.
They want to take courses from the comfort of their own home, from a
teacher with real in-the-trenches knowledge, who can cut through the usual
classroom jargon.
An online school is also one of the cheapest, most profitable online
businesses you can start. For a small investment, you have the chance to grow a
large and stable income.
In this article, I’m going to talk you through why it’s a good idea to
start an online school, and how you can take your first steps today…
What You’ll Learn
Use the table of contents below to navigate through this post:
Why You Should Start An Online School
Online schools are the future of self-education.
People who want to escape their dead-end job, learn a new skill or
finally pursue their passions are using online courses to do so.
That’s why over 10 million people have accounts on websites like Udemy,
and traditional schools are seeing growth of up to 40% in
online school enrolments.
They want to learn the skills they need, on their own
time, with a teacher they know and trust.
And it makes sense. 22 Jump Street was a great film,
but nobody wants to find themselves wandering the college halls trying to fit
in again, do they?
This hunger for online self-education has created a great business
opportunity. And, if you have a skill people want to learn, it could be the
start of a profitable business. How?
You can start an online school.
While it may sound like a daunting task, it can be one of the most
lucrative decisions you make. Your initial investment is pretty low, and the
potential profits are high.
Entrepreneur Ramit Sethi, the owner of GrowthLab, currently ranks teaching online as the most
practical online business to run right now:
Our data at Uscreen backs this up too. The average Uscreen
school owner generates $5,700 in monthly passive income.
Not a bad profit margin, right?
As someone who runs an online school, let me tell you something else; it’s
one of the most flexible businesses you’ll ever run.
You can work from wherever you want, whenever you
want and with whomever you want. All while keeping complete
creative control over what you teach.
Turn on your computer. Connect to the internet. Create what you
want. Repeat.
If you need a little extra convincing, you can find ten
more great reasons to start an online video business right here.
But if you can feel the urge to create an online school, let’s take a
quick look at one in action, so you can see how it all works.
A Magical Online Academy In Action
Magic Stream is
a great example of an online school in action.
They’re an academy where would-be magicians can access tutorials and
tricks on any device, at any time. Basically, they’re the
Netflix of magic.
The Magic Stream team wanted to create more than an
online course. Although their name and reputation could have landed them lots
of high-ticket sales with a standalone course, they were compelled to create a
bigger and longer lasting resource.
This wasn’t just about magically making money online.
It was about catering to the wants, needs, and desires of
their audience.
For $12.99 a month magicians can access hundreds of videos to help them
improve a wide range of skills. This is an affordable level of pricing and
keeps their product accessible.
As long as students are subscribed, they have access. If they
unsubscribe, they lose it.
This business model comes with lots of benefits for Magic Stream as
school owners, too:
1. Easy to scale: With their course content created they can
automate marketing and sales processes (or hire people to do them) and focuses
on the creation
2. Attractive offer: $12.99 per month is an
attractive price lots of people can afford
3. Passive income: Magic Stream receives a
payment every month someone is subscribed for no extra work (even with just 100
students that’s $1,200 a month passively earned)
4. Easy to manage: They can update, change and
add to their course with minimal disruption
5. Reason to stay subscribed: Users
want to stick around for upcoming videos
6. Community: It’s much easier to build a community around
a school than a course
Now there’s a good chance you’ve never heard of Magic Stream. But
they’re running a successful online school, catering to a specific niche, and
earning a great passive income from it.
Imagine what you could do by following the same
business model.
Speaking of which, let’s dive into the different online education
business models you can use, and how a school makes money online.
The 2 Types Of Online Education Business Model
There are two different business models you can use to run your online
school.
1. The “night school” model
2. The “academy” model
Let’s take a look at both of them and see which one is right for you.
Option #1: The “Night School” Business Model
The “night school” models is a familiar one, and perfect if you want to
create a standalone course.
We’ve called it the “night school” model because you’ll recognize it if
you’ve ever taken a night class or course around your day job.
Students:
·
Pay an up-front fee for the course
·
Follow a set structure from start to finish (with
little deviation from the main topic)
·
Finish the course with a test or quiz to show
proficiency
Online these courses look like those which are offered by companies like
Udemy or Skillshare. They’re laser-focused on one topic and have a specific end
goal.
The benefit of these is you can “launch” your course and receive a
larger up-front monetary payment. It’s not unusual for these launches to range
from four figures all the way up to six and seven figures.
But this also comes with its drawbacks. You can only earn one-off
payments this way, and you have to create multiple in-depth courses if you want
to cover a variety of topics. If you want to change a course, it often requires
a complete overhaul.
Although profitable, it can be time-consuming and stressful.
Which is why we much prefer option number two…
Option #2: The “Academy” Business Model
With the “Academy” model you create a school to cover all the
skills your students will need to learn. (Like you saw with Magic Stream
before.)
It’s like joining a sport of musical academy. A budding violinist
wouldn’t need a course about, “How to play Stravinsky”. Instead, she’d need a
complete education, cove ring topics like:
·
How to
act on stage
·
How to
care for her instrument
·
How to
apply for positions in orchestras
·
How to
adapt to different styles of music
She’d also pay a weekly, monthly or yearly recurring fee to be able to
have this comprehensive education. She’d probably be a student for the
long-term, too.
The same applies when you start an online academy.
You can create a business around a core theme or topic, and cover everything students
need to reach their desired end goal. It’s not just a one-and-you’re-done
thing, but an entire education.
From the business side of this, there are lots of benefits.
Students are hooked because they want the
upcoming content and diversity you offer. They always have something to learn,
and they’re excited when new content comes along.
They’ll stay with you long-term because you always have something to
offer, and they always get the new value, without having to increase what
they’re paying.
Admittedly, these business models make less money in the short-term. You
may not see the high four to six-figure launched from the night school model.
But you will be more profitable in the long term. Why?
Because you have a source of evergreen passive income.
Your students are here as long as you keep adding value. And, for the
life-span of their education, you can generate far more income than launching a
one-off course.
Regardless of which option you choose *coughoptiontwocough* it’s
time to look at how to start an online school. Let’s go…
How To Create Your Online School: A 5-Step Guide
1.
Choose Your Tribe
The first step is to decide the tribe of people you want to teach
online.
This is the overarching group of people who will want to enroll in your
school. For example, Magic Stream’s magicians. If you already had an idea for a
course, it’s worth looking at who your course would be a good
fit for.
Your tribe can be as broad as an industry, like graphic designers. Or it
can be narrow, like cake decorators in Canada. Whichever best fits your skill
set.
Knowing who your tribe is will make…
…much, much easier.
2.
Pick The Core Skills To Teach
Have you ever watched the TV Show Westworld? (Stay with me.)
All the robots in the show are made human by a “cornerstone” belief.
It’s a (fictional) event in their past they base their entire character around.
They come back to it whenever they need a reminder or who they are.
These “cornerstones” exist in online schools, too. But you’ll probably
know them better as categories. (I’m going to call them cornerstones though
because, well…it’s cooler.)
They’re the reason your students enroll, and why they keep paying for
content they can probably get elsewhere for free. They’re usually
the two or three skills they know they’ll come away with if they stick with
you.
Let’s say you’re creating a business school for graphic designers. You
might create content around these three “cornerstones”:
·
Research:
How to find potential clients
·
Outreach: How
to effectively contact potential clients
·
Sales: How
to turn potential clients into a paying one
You can use them to help plan your content, drive your
marketing and ensure you’re delivering the results they’re
looking for. A benchmark, of sorts.
If you’re unsure of this, think about the wants and needs of your tribe.
What is the result they’re looking for, and how can you help them get it?
Want to learn all of this in more detail? Check out
Uscreen’s brand new Video Business School! It will guide you through the whole
process of launching an online video business of any kind from start to finish.
3.
Plan Your Lessons
With your tribe and cornerstone ideas in place, you can begin to plan
the first lessons you’re going to teach.
Before you launch, it’s good practice to have at least one “completable”
lesson for each of your cornerstone ideas. This is a section they can start,
finish and learn from before moving onto another topic.
Sticking with the graphic design example above, your first three videos
might look like:
·
Research: How
to find potential clients on LinkedIn
·
Outreach: How
to craft the perfect pitch email
·
Sales: How
to sell to a client on the phone
You may also want to add additional extras to these lessons. You can
include PDFs, audio tracks, print out sheets and anything you feel will add
depth to the lesson.
Now, it’s important to note you don’t need to have a “finished” school
by the time you launch.
The beauty of running a school like this is you can adjust, add and
change your content based on your student’s feedback.
If you enroll students, they watch a video, and they’re crying out
for more information on a particular topic, you’d do well to cater to their
needs.
The idea at the start is to have enough content they feel like they’re
getting their money’s worth, but diverse enough they know this isn’t your
average course.
4.
Create Your School’s Platform
Your final step is to get your school online.
To do this, you’re going to need to use an online teaching platform.
They’ll help you to host your videos and courses, and save you lots of
money on trying to do it yourself.
Before you choose a platform, you need to ask yourself the question
about accessibility. How and where do you want your school to be used?
·
Will it
be browser only?
·
Will
people be able to access it on their phones and devices?
·
Will people
be able to access through their televisions, with OTT
video apps?
Depending on the school you want to run, different levels of accessibility
will be expected of you. While a drawing school may be great from a web
browser, a yoga school may need to go through their television.
Another of the major issues you’ll face in setting up your school is how
course platforms work. Many of them only allow you to create a standalone
course, and you have to Frankenstein them together to make it
resemble a school.
But there is a way to create an entire school where your students can
seamlessly move from section to section. Better still, you can make it
available on more devices, and cater to your customers where you need them.
Uscreen allows you to create an inclusive online school with categories
and tracking student progress and has some pretty cool website themes. Check
out our current customers for
examples.
You can find out more about us, and what we offer, by clicking here.
5.
Find Your Students Online
Now that everything’s set up, it’s time to spread the word in all the
right corners of the internet to find potential students to your online school.
How you market your online academy will come down to your audience.
You’ll need to choose strategies that focus on where their attention is, and
adding lots of value up front.
Here are some tips to help you get started:
·
Use social media: Platforms like Facebook and Instagram are heavily focused
on video right now. You can use teasers and trailers or marketing style content to reach thousands of people on a
day-to-day basis.
·
Leverage YouTube: This video-giant can also be a great source of traffic to your videos
and your website. You can read our full guide on how to use YouTube to sell your videos online right here
·
Build a mailing list: Email is still the number one way to get in
touch with potential customers. Give people the option to join your newsletter
on all of your pages. Then, alert them when new videos and products go live.
Here’s a step-by-step
guide on building your email list from scratch.
Wrapping This Up…
By now we hope you have a much clearer idea of how to start an online
school. And, the great opportunity they create for you as an online business
owner.
If you have the skill to teach, and you want to make passive income,
it’s one of the most profitable businesses you can start.
But now we want to hear from you. What’s brought you to look for how to
start an online school? Do you have any questions about starting your school?
Some
IT training providers are yet to be persuaded of the value of using virtual
classrooms. Many of them anticipate problems that may occur during a virtual
session. As a seasoned master trainer, I have had my share of virtual classroom
sessions where I thought things could have gone better. That’s why I’ve decided
to share six simple tips that will make your life much easier when running a
virtual classroom.
Many
organizations are already using virtual classroom courses in addition to their
traditional classroom deliveries to great effect.
Some of the Benefits of Running a Virtual Classroom
- Time efficiency;
- Cost-efficiency;
- It’s the closest thing to a face-to-face
training session.
But
instead of talking about the benefits, I’d like to help you and your
instructors by providing some hands-on tips & tricks to make your virtual
sessions more productive.
1. Set
The Rules Early On
Who
hasn’t played the game ‘I Spy’ in their childhood (European readers might know
this as ‘I see, I see…’)? If you were to play the game with your participants,
you would quickly discover that they don’t see most things you see and vice
versa. A major difficulty with a virtual delivery is that you don’t see all
participants. This makes it tough to recognize students who are not really
engaged with what is going on.
Very
strict rules during a virtual course are essential, especially about
communication and discussions. Make these rules clear at the beginning of the
course. Make it clear that you are not going to interrupt one another. This
means you let the other person finish the sentence before you react. If you
don’t do this, there will be chaos!
Make strict rules and be clear about them at the
beginning of the course.
2.
Keep Count
Another
thing to look at is monitoring the number of questions per learner. It is
recommended to register how many questions you as a trainer have asked per
learner. Doing this will give you insight and let you see who you’ve asked many
questions to. You can also track who has asked questions and who has not. Using
‘the question list’, you will ensure you engage all participants in the virtual
classroom.
Monitor the number of questions per learner to
measure engagement.
3. Ask
More Questions
In
addition to the previous point, I recommend you ask many more questions than
you normally do in a traditional classroom setting. Remember that people don’t
see you as they would in a natural setting so you only have your voice, your
training content, and your questions to elongate your learners’ attention span.
You
can ask questions related to:
- The framework you are teaching – e.g “What are
the # of processes in XYZ?”
- The assessment of their degree of
‘understanding’ – e.g. “do you understand XYZ”, “can you explain ABC?”
- The tools delegates use in their organizations
Keep the class engaged, ask the ‘W’ questions:
2hat, who, where, why, and when.
4.
Form Groups
Depending
on the tool you use for the virtual delivery, you can split up the class into different
groups for assignments. That way, each group can work separately on a specific
exercise. You can then visit each individual group and provide guidance and
support.
- Create virtual breakout rooms before you start
the course;
- Give the rooms a fun name; delegates will like
it;
- Assist group members with the assignments;
- Practice the break-out functionality in your
own time;
- Divide the class into similarly sized groups
with a similar level of experience;
- The maximum number of participants per group
should be 4 to 6;
- Note down who was in what group for which
exercises. Later you can mix up the groups to make optimum use of the
available knowledge and experience in the class;
- Note down who presented what kind of
presentation. Try to have another presenter for each presentation.
Use virtual break-out rooms and coach the teams.
5. Be
Prepared
You
might be eager to get started when everyone is logged in, but please check
these 5 crucial things:
1.
Explain to participants that they can raise a hand
(via an icon) in case they have a question or want to interrupt (preferred way
over audio interruption);
2.
Ask if everything is working for everyone. (e.g.
screen, audio, webcam);
3.
Ask the delegates to mute their own microphone, but
remind them to unmute in case they have a question(if needed remind them a few
times). When delegates are participating in a place with lots of background
noise, this can be quite disturbing;
4.
Ask the delegates to use headsets to prevent an
echo from occurring;
5.
The concentration curve is much shorter because
it’s a virtual classroom; plan for breaks every hour (coffee/restroom/stretch
etc.).
Check the hygiene requirements.
6. Do
Your Research
Virtual
classroom delivery is not a new phenomenon, on the contrary, so there are a lot
of resources out there to help you. Have you recently attended a webinar or a
virtual course? Think about what you liked and what you didn’t like. Also, if
you need a good guide to get you started, The Virtual Presenter’s Handbook is a
very easy, quick, and helpful read for anyone presenting virtually. There are
also lots of presentations on the topic, so don’t make
the mistakes that have already been made many times!
Leverage the knowledge and experience of others.
Many
other trainers have shared their experiences and tips on the ITpreneurs Blog –
benefit from checking out all of their blog posts.
[Update] After publishing
this article we received very valuable insight from the Head of Organisational
Consultancy at QA Ltd Ian Clarkson: “A really useful article. I am a huge
advocate of virtual classrooms and how they can enrich the learning experience.
My own tip is to ensure you design any visual material to complement the
virtual environment – don’t try to use what would work in a classroom in a
virtual space”.
Best Practices for Live Online Teaching
During
the current Coronavirus (Covid-19) crisis, there’s a rush among the
institutions to move their classes online. The need is to plan and not to
panic. For teachers who’ve never taught online, start with live classes as the
natural starting point because they create a proxy for the classroom
environment. Producing "engaging" recorded content is very
challenging and the key here is to not let "production" stand in the
way of continuity.
For
first time online teachers – simple best practices – before you start teaching
live
A.
Infrastructure
o
A reliable internet connection, with minimum 2 Mbps
of upload speed
o
Laptop with webcam
o
A good headphone with microphone (please invest in
it)
o
A device to write and annotate (e.g. https://www.amazon.in/Wacom-CTL-471-Graphic-Tablet/dp/B00FRIOMAE).
B.
Platform
I’ll
try to hold my urge to sell Impartus! I’ll only mention very key features which
are present in many platforms, and you may choose any which has some of the
below features
o
Platform should be browser based, so that first
time online students do not have to download apps
o
Students should be able to view the recordings of
the live class later on
o
Should have basic student moderation and
interactivity features
o
Should provide smooth on-boarding and best
practices training to first time online teachers
o
As far as possible, platform should mirror the
physical classroom experience
C. Get
comfortable with the basic features of the platform
o
Sharing camera and screen
o
Using whiteboard
o
Muting and un-muting your own audio
o
Muting and un-muting students, so that session is
not disturbed
o
Conducting live polls
o
Ensure that the recordings are available to the
students
Please
do this, it will take only 15 minutes and you would not want to juggle with the
platform in a live session.
D.
While conducting the Live Online Class
o
Be your normal self. No need to talk fast, slow or
differently – millennials are comfortable online. So relax and cheer up – a
smiling teacher is more engaging!
o
Be at your desk at least 5 minutes before the start
of the class. Ensure that your device is ready and a charger plugged in to the
laptop!
o
Decide on your online teaching style. Best to do
this once you have few live classes. Explicitly mention to students that you
are also learning, and invite their ideas - suddenly they will behave nicely!
o
Join the live session 2 minutes before the time,
you’ll be in control of the session. Keep all the study materials handy during
the class. Close all the other applications.
o
In a large class, keep students muted for majority
of the class. If they want to interact, they can do so by Hand Raise. At the
last 10 minutes, you may allow all to participate. Also, there might be few
students who will have poor internet, don’t let them break the flow of the
class.
o
If a small class, you can unmute all the students
and welcome them by their names as they join the class.
Pedagogy
o
There’s a lot of research available on online
pedagogy, and it’s valuable. However, don't get stressed and start with the way
you teach a physical class. You can think of pedagogy changes later.
o
Use slides and screen sharing. Display an agenda at
start of class session.
o
Use chat – it is very effective. Take help of a
Teaching Assistant if you are taking a very large class.
o
Attention span is low in an online session. Use a
mix of multimedia – slides, chat, polls, whiteboard – it’s simple and the
difference between a good and an okay-ish class.
o
One easy hack is a 3-minutes rule – do something
different every 3 minutes (change the slide, run a poll, write something,
change the pace of class, show something etc.)
o
Give student a 20 seconds "stretching
time" (a micro break) once or twice in between the session. It’s hard for
them to concentrate in an online session, and this will bring back their
attention.
o
Students will have a tendency to start reading
everything that you display. So either use animations for step by step display
OR make small slides. Ignore this, if you have already made your slides!
E.
Some more resources
o
Some excerpts from https://teachremotely.harvard.edu/
§
"Focus on the pedagogy, not just the platform:
the attributes of a physical classroom don’t guarantee that a class is
effective or engaging. The same goes for online platforms. Time spent now
thinking about how you want to teach using this technology will be time well
spent."
§
Using polls to get a sense of the aggregate
“temperature” of the room
§
Don’t expect to master everything on day 1: you
will learn (fast). Your students will learn (even faster). You may even want to
recognize this fact explicitly with your students, and invite their ideas.
7 Benefits of a Virtual Classroom
Online learning has many benefits, one of which is the flexibility
afforded by the virtual classroom.
The virtual classroom is the heart of online
degree programs—a convenient, central place where your university
courses unfold. Although there are many fundamental similarities between a
traditional campus-based education and the online
university experience, learning through a virtual classroom
offers many benefits that traditional college degree programs don’t provide.
Here are a few that made our list of top benefits:
1.
Access to coursework from
anywhere at any time
You have the
freedom to study and complete your coursework 24/7 from anywhere and at any
time that suits your busy schedule. If you’re out of town on business, you can
do your schoolwork back at the hotel, while you’re waiting for a connecting
flight, or between meetings. All you need is your laptop or other digital
device.
Once you log
in to the student portal on your online university’s website, you’re at
school. You can access assignments, post homework, watch faculty
presentations, join student discussions, conduct research, contact your teacher
and classmates, get assistance from student support services, receive feedback,
and access your test grades.
2.
Combination of structure and
freedom
Online
degree programs are built on a structure of weekly assignments and due dates
that you must meet, whether it’s taking an online test; posting homework,
papers, and projects; watching a faculty presentation; or participating in a
discussion with fellow classmates. However, within the program’s structure you
have the freedom to choose the best times to participate that sync with your
schedule.
3.
Effective time management
An online
education provides a welcome environment for working adults who need to balance
work and family with the new demands of going back to school. Right away, you
save hours every week not having to commute back and forth to classes on a
campus—and that’s just the beginning. Going back to school sharpens your
time-management skills, because you have to be disciplined and find the time to
study.
4.
Expanded world view
Online
degree programs attract students from across the U.S. and around the world, who
bring different perspectives from diverse cultures. You may have opportunities
to work on group projects and collaborate with international classmates.
Insights into other business cultures, attitudes, and problem-solving
approaches can inform your own approaches to problems and opportunities.
5.
Asynchronous discussions with
classmates
Steve
Gardiner, 2008 Montana Teacher of the Year, first experienced online education
as a doctoral student in Walden University’s Doctor of Education (EdD) program. He
appreciates how the whole e-learning platform works. “I attend class from
anywhere. I’m participating in discussions, adding my posts, submitting my
lessons, and it’s working perfectly,” Gardiner said.
Comparing his
online EdD experience with his previous on-campus master’s program, Gardiner
recalled the frustrations of having a real-time discussion with classmates. By
the time he had formulated his thoughts and was ready to add to the
conversation, the topic had changed. In a virtual classroom, that’s never a
problem. Since most of the classwork is asynchronous, online discussions aren’t
cut off when the bell rings. “I can formulate my idea while I’m out for my run
and post it when I return,” Gardiner said.
6.
Immediate feedback on tests
When you’re
enrolled in one of the many online degree programs available, you
don’t have to worry and wait for days for test results. You take your tests
online, and they are usually scored when you finish. You can quickly see where
you did well and where you need improvement. When you submit papers and
projects, you’ll use a private “drop box” where your teacher will access your
assignments confidentially and provide written or video feedback.
7.
Sharpened digital skills
While
increasing your knowledge and skills in your area of study, you’ll also be
honing your digital skills on the most sophisticated online learning
technology. As you continue to learn and study in an online world, you’ll
become confident and highly productive using interactive online tools such as
online tests, drop boxes for homework, collaboration tools, e-mail
communications to faculty and fellow classmates, and video presentations by
faculty.
As an online student, you’ll
start enjoying these top benefits and many more as you experience the special
world of online
learning.
Content conversion must consider the learners. If they aren’t in the classroom, are they sitting at desks, working the shop floor, or streaming training on their phones in the park? It must consider the training format. What happens when a daylong training session becomes multiple shorter blocks of eLearning? Content must be tailored to suit the configuration of the class.
Planning to take conventional content into the digital arena? Here are five best practices to ensure you can bring your most important content with you and deliver it in meaningful ways when you leap the eLearning divide.
1. Take the format seriously
Conventional learning offers one pedagogic format, the classroom. Students learn together in the conference room or auditorium, and they share similar resources: writing surface, notebook, caffeine.
eLearning can take place anywhere. That means you must tailor content to suit the context, said Malcolm Poulin, senior director of product strategy for ANCILE Solutions. “It’s about the work environment. In an insurance company, 90 percent of the people are sitting at their desks with a PC, but 10 percent of them are salespeople in the field, in their cars, with a phone or an iPad, and you also have to match their capability. So, the technology you use has to be able to publish into formats that are consumable to match people’s work,” he said.
For that mobile salesperson, the content you build either has to consume minimal bandwidth or else be accessible offline. “So, they may need something in documentation format, a printable PDF, or an online PDF that can be consumed in a small view,” he said. Interactive HTML may work well for the deskbound learner, but keep in mind that others may not be able to tap the full experience.
2. Break it down
Often in the move to online learning, content goes from being a daylong seminar to being a series of digital installments. You’ll need to think about how to break it down.
“All of a sudden I don’t get you for eight hours of concentrated time. Maybe I get you for two hours online at most, so there are more sessions with more time in between them,” said Chris King, principle consultant at CRK Learning.
To deliver meaningful materials in this new environment, it helps to start high and drill down. “First you ask: What is the learning goal for the session? Now, what content do you have that will support that learning goal, and can you do that in two hours or less? If you can’t, then you start making serious choices,” he said. Ask yourself: “What is truly important for me to check people’s knowledge on, versus where can I give them handouts or some other way to do asynchronous learning?”
His litmus test is a simple one-to-seven scale in response to this query: “What is the impact on the learning if somebody fails to do this right?”—ranging from no biggie to utter disaster. “You rate all your content on that scale. Anything that rates a five or above, that is stuff you absolutely have to put in the online session. The rest can be safely left to asynchronous learning,” he said.
3. Get personal
Online content can suffer from a lack of personalization. An instructor at a remote location becomes a disembodied voice, a ghost cursor moves across a presentation by an unseen hand. To convert from a traditional classroom to an e-experience, the instructor must find a way to make a human connection.
“Video does this well. It conveys a sense of personality, a sense of the presence of the instructor. With a video component, you get not just audio but visual cues,” said Diana Howles, owner and president of multimedia learning consultancy Howles Associates.
She recommends instructors produce at least one pre-recorded video component for every week of a multi-part course—for example, a new-hire orientation that might stretch for several weeks or months and may include both face-to-face and online components. “This is how you get the personal side. It’s how you establish that instructor’s presence” in the online segments, she said.
4. Keep it simple
Materials that seem orderly and manageable in a binder can morph into a sprawling mess when published haphazardly online. A golden rule of content conversion: Simplify.
Look at it this way. The online experience tends to be self-navigated. While there are certain instructor-curated touch points, much course material must be discovered and ingested by students through their own efforts. It’s up to the instructor, therefore, to offer ease of access.
“If you go to a learning management system and you open a screen, and everything is in front of your face, most people close that screen,” Poulin said. The key to success is to build vertically, down into the presentation, rather than horizontally, across the surface.
“You layer it so people are only presented with what they want, and then if they want more they can go to the next layer,” Poulin said. “You see what you need in a streamlined fashion, and if you need more, you click down. It is based on what the user needs, not based on what the designer thinks they are going to need.”
5. Fit the platform
“Online” or “eLearning” are broad terms that can be fulfilled with an incredibly diverse range of technologies, with materials delivered in any number of possible formats, from PowerPoint to Word, from interactive HTML to streaming video to static PDF. Determining the right format comes with a correlative task: finding the right platform.
“You have to look at the framework of the technology architecture,” King said.
Adobe Connect and GoTo Learning and WebEx all present “different opportunities and different tools,” he said. Adobe Connect manages shared video more easily than does WebEx, for example, “but with WebEx it is much easier to do your presentation by sharing a screen out of PowerPoint, where Adobe Connect does not do that as easily.”
The point here is not to recommend any one platform over another, but merely to note that in making decisions about format, one may also need to scrutinize platform choices. The two can push against each other, or they can be complementary if adequate care is used in the selection process.
All these various considerations can help shape the conversion of traditional content into digital format, and from the physical classroom to the virtual. Underlying all these, though, is a single point of emphasis that some experts say should be the driving force behind all these other choices.
“Any time you take a traditional classroom curriculum and convert it into online format, we always start by looking at objectives,” Howles said. “What do you hope to accomplish? What is the learning objective? That is what ultimately drives the design.”
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