Concerns & Expectations
There are a few things I am concerned about and want to focus on over the next few weeks.
How to maintain engagement with the students.
Teaching like any profession is about building relationships and trust. You and the student are on a journey together and this relationship is important to establish early on.
Managing a classroom online.
Making sure all students feel heard and can participate in the class activities. The students pay a lot of money and I want to make sure to provide an excellent product and service.
Producing something that is on par with online platforms like Linkedin Learning and Skillshare.
Production quality is very important to maintain a level of professionalism and to keep a student's interest. Also for our program, this is something we teach, so producing engaging online content is a space where we can showcase our skills.
These concerns can be overcome it will just take planning and hard work.
Expectations
My worst fear is to produce online video tutorials that have poor audio, and video quality, and are shot like we are face to face in a classroom. This is not going to engage anyone, and neither will screencast tutorials with no personality. I believe that the students expect well-produced video and lecture content that is interactive and engaging. One of my favourite online instructors is Aaron Draplin his videos for Skillshare and Linkedin Learning are amazing. Currently, I am taking his Skillshare course, Design Great Stuff: How to Make Merch with Draplin.
Aaron Draplin - Skillshare Course #6
All these courses start with a quick overview and intro all set to music they use b-roll and quick cuts to set the video's pace. There is good quality video and audio production, time-lapse and engaging graphic elements to keep the content motivating.
I also like how Draplin is in his space, his studio, and uses that to do his demos and teach. My plan is to outfit the Print Lab with camera and audio equipment to do all my face to face demos and tutorials. The space will be isolated and only I and Joy will access the lab to produce our content. Next time I go to the college I will take some photos of the space and then draw up a few lighting schematics and a shot list.
Getting excited about this new teaching format, stay safe everyone.