What can Teachers do to Engage Students in an Online Classroom?

A classroom has different types of students, each with his/her unique personality and attributes. It becomes the responsibility of a teacher in the classroom to take into account every student’s needs and find a way to meet them. Undoubtedly, it is easier to understand the learners better in an offline classroom, but with the online trend of teaching becoming a necessity, it is important to constantly look for new teaching methods to engage students in the classroom. It is the job of a teacher to implement teaching techniques that involve participation from all students.

It is the job of a teacher to implement teaching techniques that involve participation from all students. When the right support and attention is provided to learners, they become more interested to listen carefully and engage in the online classroom. If you are an educator who is struggling with keeping your students attentive and participative during your class, continue reading to learn some ways to improve students’ engagement in an online classroom.

The chat feature in Google meet and Zoom can help teachers in communicating with the students. Kids can easily ask questions or type in their responses using the chat feature. Additionally, teachers can create some standard norms for the learners like the students can type a thumbs up or down to show if they have understood a particular topic. This can help educators know about the topics that might need extra attention and where students face problems.

Empathy is a must-have skill for every educator whether teaching in an online or an offline classroom. It is important for teachers to be able to provide support and guidance to their students and let the learners know that their needs are being heard. Teachers should be open to listening to their students and also seek feedback from students to understand their learnings.

Teachers should include online tools and technological resources that can help make teaching and learning more effective. There are numerous online tools available on the internet that can help increase students’ engagement in online classrooms. Tools like Padlet, Flipgrid, Quizziz etc can be used to make the learning process interesting for children. Additionally, teachers should consider inculcating gamification in their teaching practices to make learning fun and enjoyable for learners

Students tend to participate actively in online classroom activities if they are fun, are relatable to them and when they receive rewards for them. Teachers can consider distributing rewards to the active students of the class in the form of badges and stars that they can give to learners when they answer or participate in classroom activities. Celebrating their achievements and progress motivates students to work harder.

Giving students an open platform to discuss and debate on topics amongst themselves is a great way to boost engagement in a classroom. This helps learners become more accepting and open to new ideas and thoughts. Furthermore, when students interact and get comfortable in an online classroom, they are more likely to share their thoughts and ask queries. Including fun classroom activities, where students can form groups, interact with each other and discuss various topics is also a great way to improve students’ engagement in an online classroom.

Small steps and practices can make a huge difference while teaching online. It is important for educators to build a healthy relationship with their learners. They can also consider investing in teacher training courses to stay up-to-date with the requirements of modern teaching. We at Suraasa offer programs like How To Manage an Online Classroom for the professional development of teachers. These are beneficial for effective teaching and teachers’ career development.