Tutors in online distance learning programmes often report poor student engagement during live online tutorials. Reasons are wide ranging; technical issues, no microphone, lack of confidence, unfamiliarity with the topic, fear... [ view full abstract ]
Tutors in online distance learning programmes often report poor student engagement during live online tutorials. Reasons are wide ranging; technical issues, no microphone, lack of confidence, unfamiliarity with the topic, fear of failure, and so on.
So, how do we address participation challenges and encourage active engagement? One approach which we recommend is to incorporate group activities into the tutorial plan. Research shows that increasing the opportunity for engagement using collaborative activities can be very effective in online courses (Dixson, 2012).
‘Breakout rooms’ in video conferencing software, such as Adobe Connect, provide the perfect platform for student to student interaction and collaboration. During a tutorial students are moved from the main room to private breakout rooms for smaller group discussion. The tutor can maintain an overview of activities by moving between breakout rooms while giving students the opportunity to interact with each other and the course content without their input.
The tools and functionality within the breakout room permits sharing of various types of content; video, slides, images, case studies, short papers, weblinks and equations to name a few. In addition, discussion points, ideas and findings can be recorded and communicated using the whiteboard, chat box, a note taking feature, poll/quiz responses or file upload.
This paper will explore several examples of activities that might be adopted during a breakout session in order to promote active engagement in a live online tutorial.
Dixson, M. D. (2012). Creating effective student engagement in online courses: What do students find engaging?. Journal of the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning, 10(2), 1-13.
