Method in the Madness

Teaching begins on September 4, 2017 and I'm smiling while preparing the PowerPoint document for the orientation session and reflecting on my earlier sessions with students...

During my first semester as a course facilitator, prior to the first and second synchronous meeting with students, I took the following steps:

1. Uploaded a reminder to the course main page with an avatar pointing to the meeting specifics

2. Posted a message to the Class News and Announcements

On the day of the meeting, I entered the virtual room one hour early and noticed a few students entered as well. However, the students did not enter because of eagerness to join the session, instead they entered due to the mix-up regarding the different time zones and used Eastern Standard instead of Atlantic Standard Time (AST). Therefore, I expressed appreciation for them joining early and reminded them the session will start from 8:00 p.m. AST.

After the second meeting, I realized that some students may continue to get confused with the start time, while others intentionally enter early to sort out any technical issues and to have an informal virtual chat.

For the third meeting, I looked forward to the early arrival of participants and considered it a fantastic opportunity to meet, greet and interact with students. Thus, on entering my BbC sessions, from 6:00 p.m. or 7:00 p.m. AST, students usually see the following slide on the white board:

Additionally, I also use the chat box and microphone to let students know that I'm in and out of the room, sorting out the slides for the presentation and will answer questions up to 10 minutes before the start of the session.

As a spin-off to the informal pre-session chat, we also have brief voluntary sessions after the official close of the meeting, mainly for those who join the session late. This approach encourages student engagement and is also an enjoyable experience for me.

Hereon, if you're invited to attend one of my synchronous sessions and see the slide with the cartoon character on entering the room, please note that besides my appreciation for cartoons, the slide serves a purpose: there is some method in the madness.