Faculty Toolkit

Engaging Students in Dual Audience

This guide provides approaches to faculty who engage students attending a live session both in-person and online via a Microsoft Teams meeting. If you plan to conduct synchronous sessions, place the link to your Teams sessions on the homepage of you Canvas course so students can easily access it.

If you are also recording these sessions please refer to more information regarding using and recording in Teams. 

LESSON PLAN

Having a Lesson Plan (or an outline) 
A lesson plan is a written guide that helps you organize your lessons. It keeps you focused, helps you prepare, gives confidence and structure, helps manage time, ensures achieving the learning objectives, and encourages reflection and improvement.  

The first major component of a lesson plan is the learning outcomes. Start with the end in mind. 

  • Write specific measurable learning outcomes.
    • Avoid verbs like “understand, know, learn, or be familiar with” when writing outcomes.
    • See Bloom’s Taxonomy action verbs. 

DELIVERING CONTENT TO DUAL LIVE AUDIENCES

Instructional Sequence

  • Start with a big question, a problem, a dilemma, a picture, etc. to capture students’ attention.
  • Pre-assess or activate student prior knowledge of the topic using a poll in Teams.
  • Ask students to share what they've learned (key takeaways, questions, points of clarification, etc.) through the pre-readings/activities.

INSTRUCTIONAL STRATEGIES 

In your dual live audience lessons, you should plan for how your students in all modalities will engage with the content and interact with each other. 

The list below presents instructional strategies you may want to consider to make the live lesson accessible to all modalities:  

  • Share learning outcomes for the day at the start of your lesson.
  • Use mini-lectures of 10-15 min. Plan for less content. Try to make lecture
  • Consider flipped learning (students experience the material before class through videos or reading, and come to class to apply content)
  • Share screen to demonstrate tasks, PowerPoint, website, demos, etc… '
  • Stay within camera/mic range
  • Use Elm Document Camera instead of the whiteboard if possible.
  • Encourage questions in person/in chat. Raise hand.
  • Encourage students to turn on cameras, especially when asking questions.
  • Check the chat frequently.
  • Repeat questions for online students.
  • Pause and allow time for questions.
  • Use mind dump at end of the mini-lecture where students write whatever they can remember in the chat or shared document.
  • Active Learning

The list below presents active learning strategies you may want to consider to make the live lesson interactive and engaging to all participants:  

  • Allow time for practicing content.
    • Have an in-class assignment that is required to be completed in a timely manner
  • Provide clear instructions/expectations for the activity.
  • Be transparent: Explain how the activity meets the learning outcome.
  • Pause and allow time for questions.
  • Remind students about the raise your hand feature in MS Teams.
  • Consider Collaborative notetaking alternative to recording
    • Assign two students per class session.
    • Depending on the level, may want to discuss how to take notes.
    • Encourage students to edit the notes afterward.

Names are not included in the notes, so it eliminates the self-censoring of being recorded. 

Try the think-pair-share technique, group discussions, group presentations, and other collaborative activities. 

GROUP ACTIVITIES

  • Run a group activity via breakout groups in MS Teams.
  • Assign groups early on in canvas or Teams. Group membership is permanent.
  • Assign participation points for group activities.
  • Group activities can be done partially online and partially in class – should be scheduled in advance / listed in the syllabus.
  • Group evaluation by members
  • Avoid group work outside of class time
  • Provide clear expectations and assign one person in each group to be the reporter, another to be the timekeeper, and another to keep the group on task.
  • Mix students from different modalities – Laptop required. Or group each modality separately.
  • Use breakout rooms or permanent channels in Teams.
  • Keep track of time and visit between groups, as needed.
  • Give groups an early warning before it’s time to rejoin the main session. Use “announcement” in Teams to provide timely warnings.

Note: to reduce noise pollution when mixing students from different modalities during group work, you may ask students to spread in the room- or hallway or use earbuds + mics. Mute room mic to avoid sound feedback. (Add a statement about earphones and any required technology on the syllabus).

ASSESSMENT - DEBRIEFING THE ACTIVITY 

Consider including a debriefing activity to assess student mastery of the learning objectives.  

  • Regroup with the entire class and give each breakout group time to present/reflect on their group 
  • Students muted till their group turn to present. 
  • Encourage students to come on camera when talking. 
    Encourage students to use the chat and raise their hand features to ask questions. 

Note: Repeat this model of a mini-lecture followed by an activity throughout the class time.

CLOSURE -WRAP-UP

End of Lesson

Wrap-up, summarize main ideas and loop back to learning outcomes. 

  • Assign a quick exit ticket (or one-minute paper) at the end of class for students to share key takeaways or questions from the session.
  • Students submit their exit ticket digitally (ask them to write but not post, till you tell them) or submit their reflection to an assignment in canvas (for participation points)
  • Remind students of upcoming assignments and the next class session.
  • Assigned readings/prep materials for the next session.
  • Monitor the chat to see if online students have questions.
  • Stay a few minutes following the session in case students have additional questions.

MANAGING TIME 

Make sure you time your activities as accurately as possible in your lesson plan. 
Have a alternate activity ready to conduct in case you have extra time at the end of class. For example, have a video ready to play, explain additional problems, etc.