As you prepare to move your lecture-based course online, one question to consider is whether you want to teach entirely live (synchronously) or create pre-recorded lectures and then reserve the live sessions for more interactive discussions, small group work, or office hours. These aren’t necessarily substitutes: the live lecture session can be supplemented with pre- and post-recordings of shorter clips too. The one approach to avoid, however, is a live lecture that leaves little time for student interaction during your presentation. The limitations of the lecture format will be magnified if you do not take advantage of the “lean in learning” possibilities that online technologies allow.

Put your slides in a consistent, distributable format (e.g., PDF).

Be aware that online, perhaps even more than in the classroom, students will read first and listen second. Consider PowerPoint’s “Animation” feature (or equivalent) that allows you to show just a bullet or two at a time.

Practice (at least once) in advance, rehearse using the Share Screen and switching among windows you intend to display. If you are using your own laptop, remember to close all the windows you won’t be using (particularly personal email, etc.) prior to the class.

Just because things are delivered electronically does not mean you should speed up or slow down. Your students will still absorb and process information at the same rate. But you should check in with your students more frequently than you might normally, to make sure that they follow the material and remain engaged.

Even when using Share Screen, it is good practice to make sure that your face is visible on a side screen while the materials are being displayed - otherwise, engagement can decrease.

Having students listen to a lecture attentively on a small screen can be challenging. Consider taking advantage of various features in Webex to keep them engaged, such as reflections, Chat, or invited Q&A (using Raise Hand).

Unmuted students can inadvertently start talking at the same time, you will not be able to read body language easily, and those less inclined to speak may disappear more easily. To address these issues, be more diligent about pausing and asking if anyone else has more thoughts before jumping to the next topic.

If your class normally is a large-class lecture format with Q&A, consider inviting students to ask their questions in Chat. (See Additional Tips on Engaging Students.) To help you not having to browse through all the questions in Chat in real-time ask a student to be in charge of reading the chat box for you. Also, you can consider asking students to use the Raise Hand feature in case they have an urgent question.

For example, say “I’d like you to think about ….”, take a short pause, and then if appropriate, provide an answer, or solicit answers from the students. Again, the Chat feature can be helpful in having students record their reflections.

You or your Teaching Assistant might consider offering to post responses after the class to certain Chat questions that you didn’t have time to address during the session.

Several features of small or large case-based courses can transfer well to an online setting since Zoom and other technologies have various interactive features built in. Here are tips to consider when teaching a case-based course.

Keep your students in front of you: Webex’s gallery view lets you see thumbnails of students at a time (depending on your screen). You can also move from screen to screen to see the next group at a time.

It may be harder than usual for students to know when you have shifted between discussion topics, so be sure to state clean, well-defined transitions.

Tracking the Chat feature can be useful in deciding which students to call on next - for example, if a particular student notes through Chat that she/he disagrees with the student speaking, or has some additional data to provide. As one faculty member noted, the advantage of Chat is that it’s like “reading students’ thought bubbles” - an advantage over the physical classroom.

You can request two students to “role play” a situation like you would in the physical classroom.

You can “cold call” a student just as you would in the traditional classroom, instead of waiting for them to raise their hand. For “warm calls,” you can message them privately in Chat before you call on them.

With Zoom’s polling features you can get group results in real time, then reveal them later.

Consider giving students more time than you normally would to formulate ideas jointly in one-on-one conversations (perhaps over Chat or in Breakout Rooms), and then have them share those ideas into the broader discussion.

Unmuted students can inadvertently start talking at the same time; you will not be able to read body language easily; and those less inclined to speak may disappear more easily. To address these issues, be more diligent about pausing and asking if anyone else has more thoughts before jumping to the next topic.

Summary slides work as they do in the physical classroom. In addition, though, you might invite students’ reflections on the case too (through Chat). This can be a useful addition in an online setting vis-à-vis the physical classroom - the collective reflections of the class can provide a powerful summary of the discussion. Consider archiving these reflections for the class.

In case-based classes, participation is a heavy component of the grade. Student comments can be easily recorded since Zoom retains a video archive of the entire class.

In an online setting, consider using students’ Chat comments and reflections as additional inputs to a student’s participation grade, and a supplement to the spoken word. This can help draw in students who may be somewhat quiet in “speaking,” and can also help limit frivolous chat. If you decide to use Chat in participation grading, you should be sure to let students know about this norm before you start teaching.

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