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Checklist for Remote Teaching:
Synchronous Interaction

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You may use synchronous interaction for live class meetings, office hours, small group work and for student presentations. You can also record synchronous interactions to provide recordings as an alternative for those who can’t make the event, or to as a way to review the content.

Set Things Up

If you plan any synchronous online interactions, you will need to consider several things:

  1. What type of synchronous activities you will offer as options for your students.
  2. What technology is available from your campus to support synchronous interaction.
  3. When/how often these synchronous activities will take place.
  4. Work with your campus to make sure you know how to incorporate and use the technology within your course.
  5. Create the necessary instructions, and set up in your course support your optional synchronous activity.

Establish Ground Rules

It is important to communicate your expectations.

  • Participants will need to know how/what to prepare for the session and what to expect for each synchronous meeting.
  • Participants will need to know how they are expected to communicate and interact.
  • Participants will also need to know how you would like them to get your attention when they have a question/comment, e.g., should they use the chat area, or can they un-mute to speak.

Instructor Tips for Having a Good Synchronous Discussion

  • Share explicit expectations for good virtual class experiences with your students.
  • (If possible) Open the room 15-10 minutes early (and/or leave it open for a bit after the class): So students can chat with each other, or interact with you.
  • Share an agenda for the class discussion: To make sure your students understand your expectations for virtual class sessions. Set expectations and plan the flow of the class discussion. Be sure to clearly state when you move from one topic to another.
  • Make sure your virtual classroom platform is set to automatically record your synchronous session, or don’t forget to manually start your video so that students who don’t make the session can review the recording. 
    • Be sure there is sufficient light to light and your face more brightly than the background to make it easier to see you.
    • Hold your head high and centered in the picture frame. 
    • Be conscious of your background, and what is visible in the video shot.
    • While in the virtual classroom, with your video activated, be aware that everyone in the class can see you and anything you may do. 
    • Consider that you and your students may not be able to, or may prefer not to use video for many reasons. In this event, a representational image is recommended for social presence. Images can be changed from class to class and can be a realistic photo of your face, an avatar/cartoon, or otherwise representational and creative (e.g., your pet, or favorite flower). Be sure your students know they have this option as well. 
  • Microphones pick up all ambient noise, so keep mics muted when not speaking. Use a headset if possible.
    • Eliminate background noise/music as much as possible. You may want to close your windows, door, and turn off your cell.
  • Familiarize yourself with the specific features for interacting in your web conferencing system, such as emojis, raising a hand, chat, question and answer, polls, break out rooms, etc. and how you want to use them. 
  • As you talk, create deliberate pauses to provide time for student reflection:  Take pauses. Ask students to reflect and to post their reflections in the Chat. Use their reflections to clarify misperceptions, or further explain a concept.
  • Use Polls: To get class thoughts/input on class topics. These can be public or private. and revealed in real-time, or later in the discussion.
  • Use Breakout Rooms: To create small group discussions. Results of the small group activity can then be shared by one each group in the whole class.
  • Ask for questions: Have students use the Chat, or the Raise Hand features to ask their questions. Use these features to facilitate the management of your class discussion. Respond to questions submitted. Or, call on a student to ask them what they think, or to respond to another student’s question. 
    • Use the chat feature built into your virtual classroom platform to post text: ask questions, share links, respond, and view the class back-channel discussion. 
    • You can chat to everyone in the meeting, or to a specific person. 
      • Call on students: You can call on a student just like you might in your face-to-face classroom. You can send a student that you plan to call on a private message before you call on them so they can be prepared. 
      • Use the Raise Hand/Chat Features: You can select from those that have raised their hand or commented in the chat. Be sure to un-mute students and call on them by name.
    • As the host, only you can see private messages in the chat. 
  • When you share your screen, be prepared. Be sure to clean up anything that might be visible on your desktop, in your browser tabs, in the search field on your browser.
  • Use the Gallery view: To see thumbnails of your students and to get a sense of your whole class (zoom). Typically there are several views in web conferencing platforms that allow you to select your desired view:
    • Gallery View: Shows all participants (if there is a limit you may need to toggle to other windows to see other participants). Use it to see everyone in the class. Speaker View: Shows just the current speaker, or the current speaker and the shared screen, if a screen is being shared.
    • Full Screen: Maximizes screen. 
    • Test the varied views available in your web conferencing platform to find what suits you, or is best for the activity.
  • At the end of the class, you may want to save the chat to capture any student questions, responses, links or other information that were shared before you leave the session.  
  • At the end of the class, stay for a few minutes before you End the Meeting. To allow students to interact with each other, or to reach out to you. 
  • Live Session Wrap-Up:
    • Consider where to post the recording of the class session and the meeting chat for those who were unable to attend. This may be an automatic feature of your web conferencing platform.
    • Before you post the saved chat notes, be sure to review and eliminate any private content.
    • Consider if a course announcement is necessary to share the link of the meeting recording.

Expectations for a good virtual class experience for students

  • Review your instructor’s expectations for participation in the virtual class experiences. Be prepared and ask questions for clarification, if any.
  • Typically, to participate in live virtual class meetings you will be provided a link to a web conferencing tool, or platform. Click the link to enter the virtual classroom 15-10 minutes prior to the start time of the virtual meeting to make sure you are ready to start when the meeting begins. You can use this time to meet and socialize with your classmates, or to connect with your instructor. 
  • Review the agenda for the class discussion, or course materials to be sure you are prepared. Prepare any questions, or comments you may have. 
  • Upon entering the virtual classroom, activate your video so others can see you (if you are comfortable (able) doing so). 
    • Be sure there is sufficient light to light and your face more brightly than the background to make it easier to see you.
    • Hold your head high and centered in the picture frame. 
    • Keep your clothing appropriate and professional.
    • Be conscious of your background, and what is visible in the video shot.
    • Be seated comfortably. Avoid reclining, or laying down. 
    • While in the virtual classroom meeting, with your video activated, be aware that everyone in the class can see you and anything you may do. You may want to avoid other activities such as eating, drinking, and shuffling papers.
    • If you can’t, or prefer not to use video, upload an photo of your face, or other representational image to your account. Be creative (e.g., a cartoon avatar, your pet, or favorite flower), and appropriate. 
  • Microphones pick up all ambient noise, so keep your mic muted until it’s your time to speak. Use a headset if possible.
    • Eliminate background noise/music as much as possible. You may want to close your windows, door, and turn off your cell.
  • Typically you will be able to “raise your hand” to ask a question, or answer a question. Or, there may be a specific feature for Question and Answer, Polls, etc. Be sure to familiarize yourself with the specific features for interacting in your web conferencing system, such as emojis, raising a hand, chat, question and answer, etc., and how your instructor expects you to use them. 
  • Use Chat to post text: ask questions, share links, respond, and view the class back-channel discussion. You can typically chat to everyone in the meeting, just the professor, or a specific person. Be aware that the Host may be able to see private messages between individual class participants. 
  • Respond to any calls for interaction from the instructor in the chat, a poll, a breakout room, etc. If you don’t understand something, raise your hand, or ask a question in the chat for clarification. 
  • You may be asked to share your screen. So be prepared. Be sure to clean up anything that might be visible on your computer desktop, in your browser tabs, in the search field of your browser.
  • Use the Gallery view: To see thumbnails of your classmates/instructor, and to get a sense of your whole class. Typically there are several views in web conferencing platforms that allow you to select your desired view:
    • Gallery View: Shows all participants (if there is a limit you may need to toggle to other windows to see other participants). Use it to see everyone in the class.
    • Speaker View: Shows just the current speaker, or the current speaker and the shared screen, if a screen is being shared.
    • Fullscreen: Maximizes screen. 
    • Test the varied views available in your web conferencing platform to find what suits you, or is best for the activity. 
  • You may want to save the chat for any links and information that were shared during the class before you leave the session. You can review the saved chat to keep any information for your class notes.
  • If you have to leave the session, before the end of the class, be sure to let the instructor know in advance if possible. If you have to leave unexpectedly, send the instructor a private chat message, and don’t disrupt the class as you exit. 
  • Don’t exit the class session before it is over. 
  • At the end of the class, before you exit, there may be a few moments for you to connect with classmates, or with your instructor. Be respectful of the time, and appropriate.  Leave the Meeting.

 

Resources & Best Practices

  1. Strategies for successfully engaging all students in live synchronous online classes
  2. Synchronous Online Classes: 10 Tips for Engaging Students
  3. The 10 Biggest Myths About Synchronous Online Teaching
  4. Avoid Being Ill-Prepared for Synchronous Online Teaching
  5. 4 Tools for Synchronous Teaching and Learning
  6. Designing for Synchronous Online Learning – UCF TopCast
  7. The Role of Synchronous Communication in Asynchronous Online Courses
  8. Best Practices for Synchronous Sessions
  9. Best practices for synchronous online discussions
  10. Pedagogical Considerations for Instructional Video Conferencing Sessions
  11. Teaching a Live, Online Session Checklist & Resources
  12. Rutgers: 5 Ways to Improve Remote Learning
  13. Speaking out of turn: How video conferencing reduces vocal synchrony and collective intelligence
  14. Marquart, M., Marshall, L.W., Chung, R., & Garay, K. (2022). Acknowledgements. In M. Marquart, L.W. Marshall, R. Chung, & K. Garay (Eds.), Designing Engaging and Interactive Synchronous Online Class Sessions: Using Adobe Connect to Maximize its Pedagogical Value. EdTech Books. https://edtechbooks.org/designing_engaging_interactive_synchronous_online_classes/

Check first with your campus for the online video conferencing platforms that are recommended, supported, required.

BlackBoard Collaborate Ultra

Zoom

WebX

Microsoft Teams

Google Meet