Full disclosure: I love Mr. Rogers.
I think he really was an icon in the education and media industry. Why do I bring this up? We have all seen this image circulating around online related to the challenges and new practices we are seeing across the board when it comes to teaching.
When I first saw this, I not only said – that’s right, but it also got me thinking what would be the modern version of strong virtual teachers in light of what is happening related to COVID19.
Professors and educators have spent hours (well, perhaps days if we count up all of the hours!) on prepping, planning, producing, and creating new items for their classes to balance the challenges facing education with either fully virtual / remote learning, or hybrid teaching. I know from speaking with colleagues and friends in the industry, it has created a lot of stress.
We are entering Week 5 of the semester, and I have found inspiration, engagement, collaboration and interaction amongst my students increase substantially from previous terms. I am going virtual in one course, and hybrid in another.
For me, one of the lessons I’ve learned pretty early on in being an educator is if you are looking for inspiration, you got to outside your field. And that’s what I did.
I looked to Peloton for virtual teaching inspiration, and found it in teaching during COVID19.
Getting my Peloton bike this past March was the BEST investment ever. I am a very active person that has to do something physical every day. I guess this is from my days competing in track and field. I have been active pretty much every day, and I will be hitting my 200th class tomorrow.
Not only are the classes exceptional and give you an amazing workout, but taking their classes these past months and seeing the new expectations educators are asked to have now during COVID, I realized Peloton is arming me with the necessary skills, best practices, and framework for my classes this fall.
Plus, think about it – we have a brand that has KILLED IT during this time with their sales, innovation, and brand presence. Peloton has been known for their HYBRID teaching for their fitness classes. They are doing everything virtual and still getting members to join their classes live.
Sure, I am not asking my students to do Tabata intervals or increase their resistance to 80 on the bike, but I am engaging them with relevant practices that I got from Peloton.
Here’s the practices I have embraced:
Embrace Peloton’s interactive engagement before, during, and after class. Peloton instructors make sure to 1) give shout outs to their members when they hit certain rides, 2) give them praise for their usernames, and 3) encourage them to take action by doing certain classes, etc. They also are willing to share their likes, dislikes, personality, and stories. Each instructor brings together unique qualities into their classes.
News flash – educators like us can and should show our human side to our students and let them know we are all humans.
The same can be said about educators. We have to balance the fact we have in person and virtual students in class, and we have to make sure we are not ignoring or paying attention to one group over another. For your set up, make sure you are acknowledging students as they come in virtually and in person, make eye contact, and be welcoming. All of the Peloton instructors you see in their classes bring forth consistent energy with a human touch to it- which creates a mindset that it is time for business to happen.
So, does this mean you have to create scripts? If that works for you, go for it. Me? I have to have an outline of key steps, topics, and agenda items to keep things on track and moving. Whatever system works for you in managing your class, go for it.
You can create a lot of hacks without killing your video production budget. Do you need to have the big expensive studio like Peloton has for their videos and classes? This would be amazing, but you really do not need a lot to make. The experience and the time/effort you take to engage your students in person and online is what makes a class experience memorable.
The biggest thing you need to consider here is 1) how you are delivering the material, 2) how will the content be consumed and applied by your students, and 3) how user friendly is the program.
I’ve done a few things related to my classes, such as:
- I’ve recorded videos outlining the assignments that will be done for the class. Going over these step by step (limiting them to 5 min is key). This way, students can see what needs to be done, and can go back if needed.
- Videos are edited and embedded into our LMS using Adobe Premiere Rush (one thing to keep things consistent is to stick w/ a template and format so students know what to expect).
- We have Teams and Zoom for our classes, and I have used Prezi Video to present slides and other presentations to my students. This way, I am able to see all of my students on screen (and on my second screen) to interact with them if they have questions or want to bring forth a discussion point.
I created a hack in one of the classrooms I teach at the University of Louisville one day. The webcam was not working on our classroom computer one day (I tell my students this is b/c it has not had coffee yet!), and pulled up my laptop to bring forth my webcam there so my students who are joining in online can see me along with my in person students.
Is this like the new Peloton NYC Studio? Nope! Does it work? Yep! Remember, Peloton embraced the homes of their instructors for their Live at Home workout series during quarantine. We got to see their homes, as we were in our own homes working out.
Were these classes still amazing? 100 percent!! Alex’s themed Last Dance class was not filmed in the Peloton NYC studios, but his apartment. The same can be said for our classes. Sometimes our classes are held on campus, others in our home office.
Giving S/Os and praise during class keeps students entertained and alert. Teaching online here as Peloton has done is about talking with you, not just at you. Students are the same way.If you want students to be engaged with you virtually if you are doing a hybrid class, reach out via chat, ask them a question, call on them to get a sense of what they are thinking about.
Being aware of the space where we are taking “classes.” We have to be understanding during this time with our students, and know everyone is going to be learning at different places and locations based on their circumstances. Same goes with professors!
When you look at Peloton’s Instagram, they share all sorts of pictures of the set ups people have for their bike. They are all different, and that’s great.
What’s also important to note is the instructors are the only ones that have their camera on, but you as the member taking the class have the “option” to turn on your camera for a class if you are working out with friends. The discussion I’ve seen on having cameras on 100 percent of the time versus not is interesting for me as a professor. I have provided some general expectations and proper virtual etiquette, and special expectations for when we have guest speakers and formal client presentations.
My view on this for my students is to build a class culture to lead by example to show them these are the skills (ex. remote adaptability, etc) they need for the industry. What we are doing in class will help them prepare for what they will be doing once they graduate or go on for internships. Setting these expectations consistently and leading in this effort is super important.
Transform song segments to themed class topics, Peloton classes are broken down their classes into segments for intervals, HIIT, etc and present the overview of the class at the beginning.
Setting forth a clear agenda for what the class will cover is key. Break these segments into bite size components where you discuss a concept, break for questions and comments to discuss, integrate an applied exercise, discuss, and move forward to the next segment.
If you are also ambitious, you can create a song playlist (that could be collaborated and create by everyone in the class) to play as students come online or into class. Think about ways to connect w/ students in a way that is fun, entertaining, and memorable. Peloton has their themed rides with music artists, so have a themed class with the same mindset.
The same can be applied for class topics. What can we do for our classes to integrate these practices? I’ve mentioned w/ my PR class I consider them my Avengers class, so I may do an Avengers themed class to discuss a topic. Stay tuned for this!
Hashtag to build community in class. Peloton had their Pelothon event where they had challenges for their members where they put all of their instructor’s into teams (with hashtags that members could add to their profiles) to come together and build a community.
This can be done for your classes like:
- You can establish a hashtag to be used for class to be shared of course on social, but that’s a pretty established strategy as far as hashtags. Students working on a group assignment of course can establish their own hashtags to build a community.
- Hashtags could be used for very activities to be done in class. For example, I had my students do a creator exercise in my PR class where they imagined they were creators brought in to help out w/ Nintendo’s 35th anniversary of Super Mario Bros.
- Hashtags can be used for student individual presentations as they share their ideas and lead the class discussion (I’m doing this in my PR class this fall where students work in groups to lead the class on a topic and host a workshop).
- As the students were working on the project, I asked them to share who their favorite player was in Mario Kart with a hashtag, and the students came together. I asked which player they thought I was, and their response? Toad. I laughed b/c that’s definitely not my player! Hint – he has big attitude and can take names wherever he goes. 🙂
Summary
As you can see here, I am not only grateful to Peloton for being a great brand that offers tremendous (and tough!) classes, but for allowing me to be inspired for my own teaching. I am able to try out some new approaches and ideas because I have seen what has worked for them, and see what works and what lessons can be taken away from applying these in my own classes.
With that being said, I highly recommend being part of the Peloton community. Whether you are using the app or have a bike/tread – it’s a great place to be.
I will keep you all posted on how this goes during the course of the semester!
Have a great day.
Best Wishes,
