5 Considerations for Remote Teaching and Learning

Majority of teachers have been doing some form of remote teaching/learning for at least 6 months during the pandemic. While the end of hybrid learning may seem close, there is still the possibility that the remainder of the school year may continue to be in a hybrid form. In this post, I’ll talk about the 5 major considerations teachers should have when teaching remotely.

1. Build Relationships

Building strong relationships with students leads to student success. This is one of the most important considerations for teachers to have as we go through this pandemic together. A recent publication in Elsevier Public Health, have people talking about the impact of ‘dual’ pandemic on students’ well-being. One being the COVID-19 pandemic and another from the consequences that were brought on by the pandemic such as isolation, fear, stigma, abuse and economic fallout (Banerjee et. al, 2020). 

Daily check-ins and casual conversations allow teachers to connect with students in ways that are not academically dependent. In my experience, I find it helpful to spend time focusing on building relationships and community before diving into content. As most courses are now accelerated, students’ anxiety levels are higher than normal. In the case of a science course where concepts are built on one another, it’s important for students to feel safe so that they can express their needs and concerns to the teacher. After all, Maslow before Bloom. As teachers, we must ensure that students’ needs are met before any learning can occur. 

(ASCD Tweet featuring a quote from Dwayne Reed @TeacherMrReed)

You can find out more on the different strategies that I’ve used to connect with my students in-person and online here.

2. Ask for Student Feedback

This is new to us teachers, no course could have prepared us for teaching in a pandemic, so it’s very important to consistently ask for feedback. It doesn’t necessarily have to be a formal feedback form, it could be informal, as simple as “How are you finding this so far?”.

I personally send out anonymous feedback twice during the course. The first round falls approximately a week into the course, in which I ask my students how they are finding the pacing and various concepts taught in the course and what additional resources they may need to be successful. The second round of feedback is at the end of the course, where I ask students the following:

• One thing Ms. Liu did that was helpful.

• One thing Ms. Liu could improve on.

Anonymous feedback surveys allow my students to feel like they can be as candid as possible. My students understand that I take feedback to heart, and I show them that their comments result in real changes that are made for their benefit.

3. One-Stop-Shop

Digital organization is important as a teacher to not only model but to embody as well. Creating a one-stop-shop where students can always go to find resources is helpful for getting them organized for online courses. Instead of having multiple postings on your learning management system where important messages can get bogged down or lost, have a central place where the students can access their slides, notes, and additional resources. 

I use a Hyperdoc for my entire unit plan. Each lesson consisted of the topics that we’ll be covering and any additional pre-textbook readings that students need to complete. I linked slides, worksheets, and any related resources in this single document, so that my students will always have a single document to keep track of instead of multiple ones. 

4. Less is More

While it’s important to cover the ministry's expectations and course curriculum, it’s also important to scale back and think about what are the major overarching ideas that we want students to take away. Instead of feeling defeated because particular concepts are not being taught, focus on the larger picture and assess students accordingly. I find myself having to trim the course content a bit so that my students are set up for success during remote teaching and learning. For example, students are asked to write a full lab report by hand in a regular school year. During remote teaching and learning where I have students in different modes of learning (online vs. in-person), I’ve created fill-in-the-blanks data tables so students know what type of raw data they should be collecting. This allows students to spend less time “setting up” their lab notebooks and more time focusing on the procedure of the experiment.

5. Listen

Listening is an important skill. I remember being at a staff professional development in the beginning of the year where they talked about the different types of listeners. CoActive Training Institute (a coaching training institute) broke down listening into three basic levels:

• Level 1: Internal Listening — Listening to your inner voice.

• Level 2: Focused Listening — Listening intently to another person.

• Level 3: Global Listening — Listening to others in the context of their entire surroundings.

A level 1 listener only focuses on themselves and struggles to be empathetic to others, whereas level 2 and 3 listeners allow themselves to be the receiving end of the conversation. Level 2 and 3 listeners really tune into what others are saying.

Listening is inherently difficult while teaching alone because of technical difficulties, whether it’s audio feedback from your students or listening to your own voice coming through a student’s computer, it’s not ideal. Trying hard to listen with intent while teaching is something that I’ve had to work on while teaching remotely. In addition, I have also started to focus on listening to the body and mind. Your body and mind don’t have verbal cues, so it’s even more crucial to find out what they are trying to tell you. Do you need to take a break? Do you need to take a walk? Do you need water? All these are essential questions and actions that we need to take to break up our days in front of the screen.

These are my 5 considerations  for remote teaching and learning. They’ve been helpful for me and my students to navigate through this new mode of teaching, and I hope they’ll be helpful to you too. 

If you’re curious to know how you can set up your online classroom, check out my course on the Fundamentals of Remote Teaching and Learning.

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