Title: How to Implement Synchronous and Asynchronous Teaching in Your Online Course | Top Hat
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Content: How synchronous teaching supports active learning
To ensure students are actively engaged, it’s important to balance content delivery with interactivity and time for reflection. Similar to a face-to-face classroom environment, it’s recommended that the time to present information is kept to 10 to 15-minute blocks followed by more interactive components. Discussions, class polls, ‘click on target’ questions using an ed-tech platform and giving students time to reflect on their learning through ‘minute papers’ are simple ways to drive engagement and reinforce important concepts. Regular use of these activities can also help you pinpoint where students are struggling and which concepts need revisiting. How to drive student engagement synchronously
Peer connections are crucial in creating a sense of belonging and motivating students to participate in the course. Using icebreakers, polling questions and other fun activities are great ways to foster connections between peers. Frequent feedback helps students succeed by giving them the support and direction to re-focus their studies. Regular low-stakes assessments or quizzes are an important part of the process. They help create a consistent rhythm for students while providing instructors with a steady stream of insights into student progress. Using multimedia content like photos, videos, memes and real-world examples can help reinforce course concepts while adding variety to presentations.