Zoom Tips and Tricks for Teachers

6 Tips to Managing Your Online Classroom Without Tears

Photo by Fabrizio Chiagano on Unsplash

My introduction to Zoom was in a stuffy classroom on the Friday morning before lockdown began: 30-plus teachers sardined in front of an interactive whiteboard with their laptops and tablets balanced on tiny desktops, all vying for temporary connection to the dodgy school Wi-Fi. After ninety minutes of watching trainers who barely had a grasp on things themselves getting overexcited about the background function, I went home pretty much none the wiser.

Here’s what I learned the hard way so you don’t have to.

1. The Mute Button

The number of times I’ve prayed for a roll of duct tape to fasten certain people’s mouths while I’m giving instructions defies mathematics, so you can imagine how overjoyed I was to find I can silence group chatter with the click of a button.

You can individually silence participants using the option on their video profile, or silence as a group using the “Participants” option on your Zoom toolbar at the bottom of the screen. This is a great way to ensure individual students have the opportunity to speak without interruption from others, and for you to maintain some order.

2. Annotating