Keeping the Kids Engaged During Remote Learning.
Remote Learning - here we go again!
Having spent half of 2020 and snippets of 2021 in Melbourne lockdowns, we have shared many ideas and strategies to assist our teachers in getting the most out of their students in digital classrooms. As half of all students in Australia embark on remote learning again, teachers may feel like we are stuck in our own versions of groundhog day, where our highlights include the daily pilgrimage to the coffee shop or hiding in the cupboard for a minute of peace. Our students are feeling this too, and motivation can be tough in the online space. This is where we hope that some of the ideas and strategies we share below can make this moment in time a little easier for our teachers, and more productive for our students.
Strategies for student engagement:
Have you attended a remote meeting or professional development session where the presenter actually presented for the whole session? How did you feel at the end of it? How many times did you check your phone, make yourself a cup of tea or turn on the daily press conference? Whilst sometimes there is no easier way to communicate necessary information, our students can spend their remote learning days logging in to five or six classes where they have to… sit and listen. Even our most studious students will find this task difficult! Below we have some strategies to mix up your remote learning classroom approach and keep our students switched on.
Keep the intent in Remote Classrooms: Learning Intentions + Success Criteria
To promote engagement in our remote classrooms, it is essential that students know where they are heading with their learning, and not just what they are doing on that particular day. Giving their learning purpose, as well as tools to measure how they are tracking, enables us to celebrate their successes and achievement beyond just submitting worksheets on time (though even this can be a real milestone!). Below we share strategies to continue to purposefully use Learning Intentions and Success Criteria in our online classrooms.
More remote learning ideas & strategies:
If you’re new to our blog you may like to revisit some of our previous posts with ideas and strategies for remote learning:
Remote Pedagogy: includes how to run Socratic Circles, use Grids of Knowledge and Nearpod.
Engaging Students in Online DIscussions: includes 10 strategies to break that awkward online silence.
Remote Learning reflections: includes a video of how three Melbourne teachers felt about remote teaching at the end of 2020.
Collaborating at a Distance: includes online collaboration techniques, including using chain mail, Padlet, Flipgrid and other digital tools.
Remote Meeting Protocols: includes a visual guide to use with staff and students.
Learning Off the Grid: includes off the grid activities teachers can use for student mindfulness and wellbeing.
Below is also a video we put together with advice to manage remote and blended learning environments. We hope you find it useful.