We’ve been teaching for a long time and thereby figured out what does and doesn’t work in the classroom. A lot of that has already passed into general understanding (though there are still some great ideas being discovered). That isn’t true for online teaching. There we’re still very much starting to figure things out. This means there are a lot of bad strategies and poor ideas out there. 

Fortunately, with such things as big data and data-driven research, finding out what works and what doesn’t have become a great deal easier. For that reason, in order to help the process of narrowing in on the best strategies faster and more effect, we’ve collected together some of the best ones for you. In that way, you can pick and choose which works best for you. 

Write down every problem and make long-term solutions

Every person starting out as an online teacher will run into a number of problems. Some of them will be their own. Some of them will be the student’s ones. For example, a feature might not work, or your students won’t be able to find something.

Particularly for the latter problems, don’t just resort to giving the same answer repeatedly. Instead, when the problem crops up several times, consider making a tutorial to help future students who have that problem solve it for themselves. If that’s too much work, then at least great a FAQ document and every time you answer a question a second time, put the question and the answer straight into the FAQ.

In that way, you’ll spend a great deal less time having to re-visit problems you’ve already dealt with and can spend more time on teaching. 

Record all your lessons

This is vital for many reasons. For example, if a student wasn’t there to attend a live session, you can send them a copy of the lesson that you had with the others so that they’re still up to date. What’s more, all that raw footage can be incredibly useful later on as well.

1. It will allow you to identify problems that you’ve got with explaining things. Perhaps you have certain mannerisms that are distracting, or you think you explain a point will but in reality need to go into more depth with it.
2. You can use this raw footage to create other videos. For example, for example, the tutorials that I discussed above or other useful bits and pieces that students can use to inform themselves on certain topics. 

Deal with the inherent problems of online teaching pre-emptively

Learning from home is in some ways fantastic. It does have its problems, however. For example, when you’re not seeing a teacher face to face it can be hard to stay motivated (for some reason, the greater the distance between a teacher and a student, the fewer guilt students feel).

Similarly, not knowing the other students in the class can serve to make that aspect of online learning harder as well.

For that reason, try to have group chat sessions every once in a while. I would advise once a week if that’s possible. In this way, people get to hear each other’s voices and actually form somewhat of a connection.

Do the same one-on-one with your students to ask them how things are going. It doesn’t have to belong. Just long enough for them to figure out that you’re a real person and to look them in the eyes (I’ve learned to look at the camera. People feel it’s a lot more personal when they feel you’re making eye contact). 

Have a list of tools that can help your students out

The great thing about the internet is how many tools there are for people to use. For example, for writing, there are such great programs as Grammarly out there to help them with their writing mistakes.

Help your students out by creating a list of the tools that other students (and you) have found the most useful. It doesn’t have to even be in the direction that you’re teaching. Even if you’re teaching history, then it will still be useful if you give students tools to, for example, make their presentations better. They’ll appreciate it, as they’ll feel that you care about them, and so will you when those presentations are of better quality. 

Have a good way to update your students

Find a good tool, like Google calendars, to make sure your students know when things are due. Even better, get them to set reminders for themselves so that they will remember when things are supposed to be handed in and won’t make up some new version of the dog ate my homework.

This is important, for the same reason I outlined above. It can get easy to forget when things are due, as most people have whole other lives going on. And once you start falling behind, it can be very difficult indeed to catch up. 

Be willing to experiment with new techs

There are constantly new technologies coming out that you can use. So try them out. You never know which one is going to revolutionize how you teach and interact.

You can even turn it into something that you can do with your group. You ask them if they’re okay with trying a new tech, you try it for a week and then you all give your honest opinions about it.

Even if the tech sucks, this can often create a good bond, as complaining about things can often bring people closer together. Just make sure that you don’t overdo it. One new tech per group is quite enough (unless there is an appetite for more, of course).  

Last words

Online education is changing quickly. That means you’ve got to work hard to keep your best practices up to date. Only in this way can you make sure that you change just as quickly and thereby stay up to date. Because in this modern age what matters is no longer how well you can teach, but everything around it as well. 

With these pieces of advice, you’ll be better prepared to do a great job in the online sphere. What’s more, a lot of these strategies can save you a lot of time in the long run, as you automate more and more and create an ever better energy with your students.

So don’t be shy, give them a try and stay ahead of the curve.