Zoom Basics and Best Practices

1. Testing the equipment. Make sure the link is working, along with any other equipment you are using, like a webcam. Before the meeting occurs it is recommended to send a test link to the co-facilitator or “test” participant.

2. Honor Tech Geekiness. Parents and students are coming into this environment with varying levels of experience. Be patient and support those who need it. Let students and families know that meetings can be recorded and watched later to lessen frustration.

3. Virtual Meeting Norms. Similar to face to face, virtual learning should have norms. Be present in a virtual session. Use headphones if available to limit background noise. Encourage students to use the mute button when not speaking to reduce background noise.

4. Utilize different online tools. Engagement can look very different online vs. face to face. Use different tools to help encourage engagement and ensure students stay focused. Use tools like Google Forms or Menti to gather data with polls. Google Docs and Padlet can show who is contributing to the session and encourage online discussions. Google Slides also works well in Zoom.

5. Be Supportive, and Set Up for Success. Virtual sessions can be difficult for participants and there can be factors like device issues and poor wifi connection. Consider including a “tech”, “time-keeper”, “note-taker”, “facilitator”, etc. similar to a face-to-face meeting. Having a Google Doc agenda set up with talking points, outcomes, and next steps to help people feel grounded.

This is new for everyone involved, if you have any questions or concerns with video conferencing please make a virtual one on one appointment with a Tech Integration Specialist here.