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Below are recommended best practices for faculty managing a blended/hybrid class using Zoom:
- Ask for a volunteer moderator. It is helpful to have a student in the classroom who is logged in to the Zoom meeting, monitoring the chat and the raise hand feature to let you know if a remote student has a question.
Important! Be sure to let this student know to decline to join audio when entering the Zoom meeting, or mute any device in the room that will join the meeting to avoid audio feedback.
- Take time to greet the remote students. Establishing a connection with your students takes a bit of extra effort when you're not in the same place. Taking a moment to greet each student as they enter your Zoom session is a great way to let them know you care and value their presence.
- Intentionally include remote students in discussions. Remote students are more likely to stay engaged when they know you regularly call on them for responses. Consider stopping lectures frequently to ask questions of both in-person and remote students. Some faculty take turns calling on in-person then remote students. This type of discussion provides a measure of accountability for completing the readings in advance and gives you an excellent opportunity to check for learning.
- Consider using breakout groups to facilitate small group discussion. For the best student experience, it is recommended that you group in-person students together and put remote students in Zoom breakout room(s). You can visit with in-person groups and join the Zoom breakout room(s) to engage with their discussions.
- Note: If you want mixed groups with both in-person and remote students, make sure that 1) each group has at least 1 in-person student with a device they can use to join Zoom and 2) the groups spread out (e.g., in the hallway, other classrooms, outside) to avoid audio feedback and crowd noise.
- Consider using Google Docs, Slides or Jamboard. Setting up a collaborative workspace in advance gives you an easy way to collect students' discussion notes, questions or other feedback in real-time and in one place. By reviewing their notes as they work, you can engage more quickly and respond precisely.
You can find information on best practices for setting up the technology in your classroom at Classroom Technology Set-up for Blended/Hybrid Instruction.