Online teaching is a product of COVID and as more and more teachers are forced to adapt then there is a need to change your teaching planning and approach so that your online lessons are as successful as your face-to-face sessions.
When planning an online class the first thing to consider is planning. Within your lesson you need to have one main objective – this tells you what the purpose of the class is and what the students should be able to do by the end of the lesson.
Examples of objectives include:
- Students will understand the difference between simple present tense (e.g., “We eat.”) and present progressive tense (e.g., “We are eating.”) and use these tenses appropriately when they complete the worksheet accompanying this lesson.
- Students will be able to correctly label 20 external body parts on a picture.
Although with all lessons it is important to have a clear objective, this is even more important with online lessons as you are unable to give as much one-to-one attention to students as with a face-to-face classroom so the more structured and clearer things are the better.
Make sure that your objective is clear
In addition to the objective, you also need to be very clear on the key vocabulary words you will teach. It is a good idea to write these down so that they can be shared with pupils and those who work better visually rather than orally can keep referring to this.
Another important thing to think through is the target phrases or sentence structures that you want to practice with the students. Again, have these on paper ready for students to refer to. To help you to retain your focus, it is recommended that you write down the key aspects on a sticky note and stick this on your computer. In this way, you can consistently see what you are working towards.
In a face-to-face classroom, students can maintain concentration as there are many things to look at – the other students / the classroom environment / the teacher / the board, etc. In comparison, in online lessons, there is not much to see – only a screen and as a result, it is very easy for students to be distracted. To avoid this, there is a need to add additional elements, such as pictures/videos as well as audio.
Online songs and visuals are essential parts of an online lesson
Online songs and videos are an easy way to develop topics and themes. Make sure that you are not relying on an internet connection to play these during your lesson but have downloaded them. Before the lesson, open them up and make sure that you have an easy access link so that you can open up the video quickly so that there is not a pause in the lesson flow.
Perhaps the easiest way to introduce easy visuals in online lessons is through the use of a whiteboard. The best way is to sit in front of a large whiteboard so that when your students are looking at you they can see the information on the whiteboard at the same time. However, if that is not possible then it is fine to have a small whiteboard that you hold up. Different colors enhance the process as long as you are consistent, for example, writing keywords in black and key sentence structures in red, etc.
Some technologically advanced people can use an online whiteboard in their online lessons. This gives a different effect to the actual whiteboard but offers enough alternative and distraction for the eyes to develop attention.
If you are teaching from home then it is possible to utilize as many things as possible from around your house. For example, if learning about present and past you can show some of your photographs showing you now and you younger. You can use real clothes and items to demonstrate vocabulary as well as use real foods and items to demonstrate.
Within an online ESL lesson, as with a face-to-face lesson then it is important to have a specific structure, for example, warm-up/group practicing / individual work / plenary (wrap up session)
Warm-up
You may find that many of your ” go-to ” warm-up activities do not work for online lessons and if you are using a textbook that has activities you may find these are not suitable either. As a result, take the time to Google online ESL warm-up games and make a list of these so that when preparing your online lessons you had a ready-made bank of warm-up games you can use online.
You can use a real whiteboard in your teaching
Explanation and demonstration
Using your clear objective, keywords, and phrases, during this phase of your plan you are working to introduce new material and vocabulary. Make sure that you give opportunities for your students to speak and repeat during this section.
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It can be very worrying during online lessons to give students time to speak as there is the worry that no one will speak / everyone will speak at once and you won’t be able to hear anyone clearly /it is too long and boring to ask everyone individually etc. Nonetheless, it is recommended to allow students time to speak.
There are different things that you can do to overcome these problems when teaching online – for example:
- Having an online number generator and everyone has a number so that they know when they are supposed to repeat a word, with pupils being encouraged to speak as soon as the previous person has finished
- Adding a new dimension to the speaking e.g. saying “ those who wearing socks repeat now “ “ those who have two brothers repeat now “ etc. – in this way you are separating the responses in an interesting way
Group practicing in online lessons
In this section, everyone practices the new material together. In a face-to-face environment, many teachers make this section more interesting by throwing/rolling a ball or some other way to vary the presentation. A similar result can be achieved within online learning by having an online wheel with every student’s name on it. The teacher quickly spins and the student answers the question. This could be developed further into a game format by having several student’s names in each of the wheel sections.
In addition to teacher-led questions, the teacher can reinforce knowledge through:
- Showing a video with pupils watching out for any aspect such as keywords/answers to questions.
- Reading passage with follow up questions
- An online game – with the development of online learning the number of online games has significantly increased. It is easy to Google online games according to your themes and student age range.
Add props and variety to make online lessons more appealing
Individual work
As with face-to-face classes, it is important in an online class that students have an opportunity to individually practice what has been taught. In a face-to-face class, this is a straightforward process with the teacher, for example, giving out a worksheet, and whilst pupils complete the sheet they go around facilitating, praising those who are doing well, encouraging those who are overcoming problems, and assisting those who are struggling.
To overcome these difficulties it is suggested that after the task is set then:
- You set up a written comment system so that students can write asking for help/clarification etc.
- You set up a system whereby if the student needs help they can digitally raise their hand and you can speak only to that student without everyone else listening in
- Make sure that you try to interact with as many students as possible whilst they are working ( in a private chat ) – not every student is aware that they need help or has the confidence to ask for help
- Ensure that the students are aware of the time frame and the amount of time remaining
In the face-to-face classroom, you simply collect in completed work, so you will need to work out a new system. Things to consider in online lessons include:
- Where do students hand in their worksheets/work? – will you have individual files or files according to the lessons?
- When do they hand in the work?
- Marking – how will you mark? – will you use an online proofing tool?
- How will you give the work back?
Work out how you will interact with pupils whilst they are individually working
Plenary (the wrap-up section)
This is an important part of the lesson and enables you to check the extent to which your objective has been met.
In the same way that you have a bank of warm-up ideas, it is important to revise your face-to-face wrap-up sections. Many of the quick games that you used to play may not be suitable so you now need to make sure that your online lessons have a wide variety ready readily available.
Overall, the shift to online from face-to-face teaching is a complex one requiring a lot of thought, preparation, and alteration of perspective. However, with enough hard work, enthusiasm, and flexibility, all teachers can make the change. Don’t be afraid to take the time to research and share experiences and tips with others – there is a lot to learn from others and with patience and a great attitude you will soon be able to be an effective online – as well as face to face teacher.
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