We have made it to Week 3 officially for our online teaching transition. I have been very impressed with how all of my students have moved over to our online setting with confidence, ease, and dedication. I am inspired by all of the professors who are doing all they can to make this a good experience for their classes and students.
We are all embracing a lot of change in what we are now classifying as the “new normal.” Meaning, we do not know when or if we will go back to how things were before. We do not know when it will be safe again to do the things we have normally done in society and in our daily lives. To summarize everything – there’s a lot of uncertainty, and it has been impacting every aspect of our lives.
Here are some things to keep in mind as you are working and teaching in the new normal.
Be kind to yourself, and to your students. We are all experiencing new things we have not been prepared for to do – so it is important to understand this is going to be a big transition for all of us. Go outside, take time out of your day for fitness, and relax.
You also want to set up a schedule so you are able to stay focused and on track. For me, I have been treating this like how I would over the summer, where I would be working on projects, research, or books (well, at least for the last few years!). This has allowed me to know when I need to do certain things each day, and stay organized.
Check in with your students as well. See what you can do to help. Many may have lost their jobs or are concerned about job prospects. Offering to help during this time will truly mean a lot to them.
As an educator – ask for help as well! There are many of us who are here to help. Doing guest lectures, sharing resources, etc. We are all in this together and empathy will be a key factor to embrace here for all of us.
Understand how your teaching will evolve. I think after this semester, people will think of online teaching with a whole level of respect that was not there before. I have been teaching online for 10+ years, and I have found it takes more time, energy, and commitment to do it well. It’s a lot! You have to think about how you can cultivate a dynamic learning environment online through various channels, while making sure the material you are engaging with is relevant, current, and interactive.
I also have found teaching online has helped me in my face-to-face classes. However, with what we have been asked to do recently for our classes, I have also seen that this has given me an opportunity to learn and practice new skills. I am also doing more video updates. I feel more confident in my video editing skills. I have updated my YouTube channel for the first time – ever! All of these things were always pushed off to the back burner – but now, I am embracing them. Try out these new skills, tools, and programs you had always wanted to explore.
Am I going to be competing any time with the professional YouTubers? Nope. Not a chance. Am I better than before? Absolutely.
Update each week on what will be covered. We only have a few more weeks left in the semester on our end, so we have some final elements to make sure we focus on.
However, when you are setting forth your expectations for the class, you want to make sure you outline what will be covered each week for the class (ex. group meetings, recordings, etc) for the students to follow. For my social media classes, I have been doing some live sessions (which will be what I will be going over in a minute) and some recorded sessions.
My classes traditionally have met three times a week. I break this down online by having the following schedule:
- Monday: Recorded lecture for the students to follow based on the course material we are covering for the class. This helps start the week of with what we will be discussing over the live sessions for the week.
- Wednesday: Guest lecture with a professional in the field. We meet at the same time as we did before COVID19, to establish some sense of normalcy.
- Friday: Group meetings for client work. This allows students to be able to meet with me one-on-one to ask questions about what needs to be done for their final project.
Utilize the tools we have during this time. I have been SO impressed with the resources that we are able to get now from brands who have generously given their tools for professors to use. Google has done a lot with Google Classroom. Loom and Zoom have various discounts for educators. Cannes Lions has their free initiative to give free access to The Work for students. Adobe has given students free access to the Creative Cloud till May 31st. We have all of these tools, resources, and more to be able to integrate strategically into our classes and for our students.
We have to be aware of what we can do to make sure our students are able to get access to these tools and resources not just for the class, but for their future careers. Many of the students I have this semester are graduating into an unknown market. We do not know how much longer COVID19 will continue impacting society and the job market. We have to make sure are able to give them as much as possible so they can navigate these choppy waters.
Bringing in Guest speakers. You can still have guest speakers come to your class – the only difference is you are doing things online. In fact, I have been able to have more guest speakers in just the past few weeks than any other time in the course of the semester.
I reached out to three amazing professionals who are working with some of the best brands out there today. Leo and I have been friends for years – and he’s always been a hit with my students. My students have heard about the great things Aviation Gin is doing, so having Adrian come and share his experience and perspective was awesome. Adam from Chipotle was a special treat since he was able to share the work his team is doing, and gave my students a code to get a free entree! How kind was that?!
Adam made such a great point during his talk w/ my students about where business is getting done today.
Traditionally, everyone has said in the past that business happens on the golf course, but as Adam shared today with my students – it’s in the DM. Specifically for me – it is the Twitter DM.
I am so grateful to all three professionals for sharing their time, energy, advice, and expertise with my students. These three are leading our industry and are most follows!
If you all have any additional questions on how to teach in the new normal, let me know. I am here to help in anyway I can – just let me know!
Hope you all are doing well, staying safe!
Best Wishes,
