I just counted the various Skype and Google+ guest lectures over the last couple of years, and I realized I have done over 20. Yep – that’s correct. I was pretty surprised when I saw this number, but I realized I started doing these when I was a PhD student at Tennessee and working on my research in social media and crisis communications. Wow!
I have guest lectured on a variety of different topics for undergraduate classes and even graduate classes in PR. Most of the topics I cover focus on social media – but I have talked about online reputation management, Google Glasses, and PR and crisis communications.
For professors, why is it key to conduct guest lectures, especially on social media platforms like Google+ or Skype?
- Opportunity to reach young professionals at other universities: What better way to engage students is to talk about your areas of expertise and share insights? I have really enjoyed chatting with students from other universities, bounce off ideas, and even network with them via social media (mostly LinkedIn and Twitter, but also Facebook as well). It’s been fun to see what they are up to now after the course has finished and even after graduation.
- Network with fellow professors: Most of the classes I have talked to have been friends I have meet during my PhD studies or at conferences. Most of the time, we see each other at conferences talking about research – but this is an opportunity to have other professors from other universities see how we teach. We can get their feedback on how we did with our presentation and see what we can do to improve or make even better. I’ve gotten some great feedback over the years that has really helped me improve how I present the material not only to other classes, but also to my own classes.
- Share your expertise and insights on a particular topic: This is an opportunity to talk about what you know best – and showcase these insights with others who may get inspired by hearing your talk. It’s been fun to see how many students want to get more into social media and crisis after talking to them about it. It’s very inspiring to see!
If you are going to do a virtual guest lecture, you will want to make sure to do the following:
- Check the technology ahead of time and make sure it works: This is key – if you are using Skype or Google+, make sure to test this out first before the class. If you are using Collaborate or Adobe Connect, this is also important as well.
- Schedule on days when you are either not teaching yourself, or during certain times in the semester: This is key – I usually have my guest lectures on my research/consulting days, but sometimes this doesn’t happen. Make sure to note the time and day, as well as the difference in time zone as well.
- Share slides and post them online: I use Slideshare, and it has been great to upload my guest lecture presentations online to share with others so they can see what I talked about in the guest lecture. I have done this for several classes, including topics where I covered Google Glass, Managing online reputation, and Blogging to name a few. Make the slides visual, have hyperlinks, make sure you have your university branding associated with it, and the contact information you are comfortable having listed in the presentation to share with others. Check out the one I did for the guest lecture from today.
- Announce your guest lecture talk on social media before the class: Most of the classes use social media for out of class discussion, so you will want to make sure to mention 1) the professor 2) the class hashtag and 3) the university they are at. Gives them some recognition for using technology into the classroom and for their classes.
- Thank the professor and students after the class as well: If they have a Twitter presence, make sure to mention the professor, hashtag, and university to thank them for this opportunity. The same goes if they are on Facebook as well.
In summary, providing guest lectures and taking the time to share your insights with others is key. I have thoroughly enjoyed every guest lecture I have done via Skype or Google+. It’s very rewarding and exciting – teaching is wonderful both in person and virtually!
Hope you all are having a great day!
Best Wishes,
Karen
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