HELIX Classroom allows your students across the world to feel fully included in your classroom. HELIX Classroom enables you to connect meaningfully with all your students, but what happens when your course is big? In this series, we’ll discuss best practices for teaching in a HELIX Classroom with a large number of students.
If a lot of your students are joining over Zoom, you may be able to see some students raise their hands via video but not all. Here are some ways you can manage participation when a lot of students are joining your class via Zoom.
Use the Zoom “Raise Hand” feature and the Participants Panel
If a lot of your students are joining over Zoom, you may be able to see some students raise their hands via video but not all. You can use Zoom’s “Raise Hand” feature to quickly see the Zoom students who are ready to participate even if you can’t see their video. Students who select the “Raise Hand” button in Zoom automatically get moved to the top of the Zoom Participants list. You will need to request that your Remote Participation Coordinator to pull up the Participants panel on your monitor while you set up for your class. Here are ways you can use this feature in your class:
- Debates: You can ask who thinks “Yes” on a particular debate topic or question. Invite your in-person students to raise their hands and your Zoom students to select the “Raise Hand” button in Zoom. You’ll then easily see the students who have voted and call on them.
- General Discussion: Encourage your students to use the “Raise Hand” feature to indicate they’d like to contribute to the discussion.
Use a PollEverywhere Text Wall
Giving your students time to write a response to a question you ask helps your students prepare to participate. You can use a PollEverywhere open-ended survey to have students type quick responses. As your students type their responses, you can show the results coming in as a Text Wall. This is a great way for you to collectively see responses from all your live students. You can then spotlight specific responses to drive your discussion further and leave the poll open for your students who will be watching your lecture recording later.
Got Questions?
Email Karina Lin-Murphy at karinalin@fas.harvard.edu if you'd like to talk through teaching practices in your HELIX Classroom. You can email HELIX_Classroom@dce.harvard.edu for ideas, concerns, and all things HELIX Classreoom.