toc

• What Is Student Engagement?

• Why Is Student Engagement Crucial For A Better Learning Process?

• 9 Ways To Improve Online Student Engagement

  • 1. Be organized
  • 2. Always value feedback
  • 3. Make sure to have time for games
  • 4. Keep the lesson materials interesting and various
  • 5. Plan group activities
  • 6. Try to include solo activities
  • 7. Use recent examples in class materials
  • 8. Find ways to encourage students
  • 9. Information should be to the point and simple

• Tips to Boost Student Engagement With A Virtual Classroom Tool

  • Choose a simple and flexible video conferencing platform
  • Find practical methods to be organized
  • Interesting and varied ways to gamify the topic
  • Fun group activities
  • Easy ways to get feedback
  • To sum up

What Is Student Engagement?

The degree of attention, curiosity, interest, optimism, and passion students show when they are learning or being taught is student engagement in the discipline of education.

It is basically the student’s will to learn and participate in a class.

Why Is Student Engagement Crucial For A Better Learning Process?

It is a fact that high motivation has a positive effect during the learning process. When students are motivated enough, they tend to focus more on their teacher and the lesson rather than becoming bored and losing track of important matters. So, it is crucial for teachers to engage students to increase the success rate of the class.

There are lots of reasons to distract or make students lose motivation both in a physical learning environment and a virtual classroom. However, where there is a problem, there will always be solutions too. Effective solutions will clear off this problem and improve the learning experience in online learning.

9 Ways To Improve Online Student Engagement

1. Be organized

Being prepared and organizing the lesson materials are critical. It benefits both the teacher and the students if materials are ready to be used and arranged properly during the lesson. It is boring for the class when a teacher searches for the material for a specific part during an online class. Students lose attention while waiting for the teacher to find the right material.

When not planned, teachers may

• Get lost among the materials,
• Lose track of the files, and
• Feel overwhelmed.

It is also beneficial to check if the files are compatible with the digital platform prior to the online lesson.

2. Always value feedback

Feedback is essential for teachers to ensure the students understand the lesson and keep their attention alive. Asking the right questions and answering the questions of students will reveal how much of the information they understand. This way, it is possible to communicate more with shy or introverted students in the class as well.

If you want to increase success in the virtual classroom environment,

• Answer the questions,
• Test the knowledge of students,
• Inform the students about the topic,
• Make sure that students know what they will learn and the importance of the subject well.

All these also make the students feel valued by the teacher, and it creates a special bond.

3. Make sure to have time for games

All work and no play make students dull learners!

Giving theoretical knowledge all the time is never the most effective way to teach a lesson. However, a bit of fun is always helpful in memorizing the topic. Using games to teach a topic helps students understand the lesson and prevents the feeling of boredom.

Trying certain games and activities in a physical classroom is not always possible. That is why online learning is so awesome! In the vastness of the internet, lots of visual features let teachers and students try new things. Particularly young student groups are very good at leveraging technology, which makes it easier for them to be more engaged in the topic!

4. Keep the lesson materials interesting and various

Variety adds a lot to the lesson. If the materials only include photos or videos, the class becomes dull. Who would enjoy watching slide shows all the time? There are lots of materials that can be used in a lesson. As there are different types of learners, there should be different types of materials.

According to previous research, the human brain can memorize visuals better than other types of materials. So, students will more likely remember 65% of class materials if visuals are included. Exciting videos, photos, graphics, etc. that are suitable for the students’ levels will both keep them interested and help them understand the lesson more.

5. Plan group activities

Group activity is one of the key ways to keep students engaged in the lesson. Instead of making them watch a screen, listen to the lesson, and keep notes all the time, it is better for them to brainstorm and work towards a common goal. This gives students the responsibility of being in a group.

Interacting with other classmates while studying makes the topic more memorable, especially for extroverted students. Working as a group encourages solidarity and working in harmony. Since it is harder to build social bonds over the internet, this helps students create strong bonds with their classmates.

Related article: What Is A Virtual Classroom? How To Make It Interactive?

6. Try to include solo activities

Some students do not always enjoy group activities. They may feel distracted or fall silent when they are in the middle of a group activity, especially during online learning. Solo activities are therefore necessary for students who are more productive when they work alone.

Solo activities are very useful both during an online class and after the class ends. It helps some students express themselves better and teaches others how to manage an assignment independently. Both parties can benefit from the situation. It is also simple to arrange solo activities in an online class as well!

7. Use recent examples in class materials

Examples are at the heart of the learning process. They always help students understand the topic easier. Additionally, using examples from current trends or creating examples based on the group's interest will definitely help them focus. Including their interests in the examples will help them memorize the examples better.

Just imagine how fun it would be for the students to see their favorite singer or actor in an example they see in lesson materials instead of seeing examples from 30 years ago! It is always beneficial for teachers to keep themselves up to date and follow the trends of their target group. This also improves the relationship between the students and the teacher.

8. Find ways to encourage students

There is nothing that a well-encouraged student cannot do! The importance of encouragement cannot be stressed enough. Especially for very young student groups, it is vital for them to feel that their efforts and success are appreciated by their teacher. Verbal and non-verbal ways of awarding can put students in a good mood.

The feeling of being able to understand a lesson and do well is very rewarding for all students. Teachers may help the students realize that even the most difficult subjects can be learned when it is studied enough. Nothing is impossible when studied well!

9. Information should be to the point and simple

There is no need to confuse the students and make the lesson tiring for everyone.

Who would like to learn a subject the hard way when there is a more simple and more fun way to learn that same thing? Most of the time, simple ways are the best ones, even while trying to explain highly complex matters.

It is crucial that teachers determine the level of the target group and provide only the necessary information. Further, simplifying the subject as much as possible will encourage students to learn more. When there is already a lot of distraction in online learning, giving the necessary information before students lose their attention will be the best for both sides.

Tips to Boost Student Engagement With A Virtual Classroom Tool

Perculus offers teachers everything they may need in a virtual classroom to boost student engagement and increase students’ success. With tools that are easy to use, teachers do not need to find other services that can help them and waste more time! Here are some tools Perculus provides to tutors and students!

Choose a simple and flexible video conferencing platform

Your video conference platform is pretty powerful. Perculus, with its intuitive tools and flexible options, prevents the waste of time that typically occurs while trying to set up and organize a class meeting. Now everyone can manage video conferencing without any effort!

As the top pick of instructors, its built-in conferencing features allow you to share up to 50 cameras and create layouts that are easy to manage. The features that work smoothly prevent technical problems and distractions during lessons.

See: Video Conferencing

Find practical methods to be organized

With its course flow tool, Perculus reduces the risk of losing students' attention. To build a flow, teachers can upload PDFs, quizzes, games, and other kinds of activities within the system prior to the class. By doing this, they can help lift the spirits of the students so that they are more willing to participate in the lesson.

All the materials stay in one place, and they can be reflected on the screen with a click. That way, it becomes easier to use time wisely and make students participate more, and students will not get bored during the lesson.

See: Course Flow

Interesting and varied ways to gamify the topic

A high-quality virtual classroom prioritizes gamification. Thanks to that, learning and teaching no longer feel like a chore. Lots of different game features can be used to teach a topic, and they save the class from the heavy atmosphere of a boring class. With Perculus, there is always a fun way to learn and teach a subject.

See: Gamification and Activities

Fun group activities

Group activities are a crucial part of online teaching and breakout rooms are amazing for that aim. This way, you can easily assign certain topics to groups and create private groups to let students discuss more freely before returning to the main conference. Students do not get distracted by other groups, unlike at school!

See: Breakout Rooms

Easy ways to get feedback

Getting and giving feedback can be tricky, but not with Perculus. Learning analytics in class has never been this easy. Teachers can now do more than take attendance during class. Perculus’ Engagement Index keeps a record of the attendance, participation, and student assessment and computes a score for the class, saving time for teachers.

See also: Learning Analytics

To sum up

In short, online learning can be tricky from time to time, and it is helpful to know how to engage students. Moreover, it is a fact that online learning is shaping the future of education now. Both students and teachers should find a way to adapt to this updated way of education.

This is why cutting-edge tools, virtual classroom platforms, and teaching techniques are being developed.

With all the techniques that have been developed and will be developed in the future, teaching and engaging students will not be a serious problem for teachers. Perculus is always ready to make things easier thanks to the features it provides. Entering the colorful world of Perculus is just one click away!

If you want to see the advantageous features of Perculus, just click to try it for free. Remember to check out other plans for the needs of you and your class as well!