Now that we are back in class, many educators I know are staying away from online presentations. And I think that because of that, some are missing out on great learning experiences for their students.
Before I decide on an online session, I ask myself the following questions :
1 - Is it something I can do as well in person or without the online presentation ?
2 - Is this format the right way to present this information to my students ?
3 - Will it be presented in a way that adds value to what we are learning ?
If I can find someone to do a presentation live, by all means I will. But especially for those of us in smaller areas, Zoom has removed barriers to access information and experts like never before. Even for those in large cities, Zoom gives us access to expert working in the field and learning directly from them.
One of the best resources for this is Exploring by the Seat of your Pants. My students loved learning about penguins through a live feed with researchers in Antarctica. Actually seeing the penguins, hearing them in the background and being in the field with the researcher inspired my students in a way me teaching about a penguin wouldn’t. This is for sure a value added kind of lesson! If you haven’t already used EBTSOYP, check it out - they offer multiple online sessions each week in both English and French.
Because Zoom had become such a big part of other industry’s day to day through the pandemic, they are also seeing how they can use it as an outreach tool. Probably the best example of this is when we were able to Zoom with the fantastic team from Netflix's Baking Impossible. Having access to people we never would have previously allowed students (and me!) to learn so much more. Students also felt valued and were honoured to have these ‘celebrities’ take time to talk to them. You can take a look at the recording of that session here.
I don't use Zoom experts and lessons all the time, but when they will provide my students with an experience that they can’t get from a book or when we don’t have access to a live presentation or expert, these online activities have helped my students develop their love for science and have allowed them to see other places of the world that were previously closed off to them. Who knows, maybe one day they will be the ones on the other side of the camera sharing their research with a class!
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