Sharing Our Best Practices

This is the MOST important part of a virtual delivery and requires more time than a face-to-face delivery. Create objectives, a detailed agenda, activities, time allotment for each topic, polls you want to ask during the training, etc. Once the materials are created, take time to practice walking through the training, checking the time allotment, creating questions to ask, and ensuring you are incorporating a variety of experiences for your participants (e.g. discussion, activities, breakouts, individual work, lab work, etc.).

The Project Manager is your “buddy” and he/she is available to help ensure a smooth start to the course. Students may experience technical difficulties while attempting to log-in. In this scenario, please use your Project Manager to assist with trouble-shooting, as to not delay the start of your course.

You are already at a disadvantage in a virtual environment where you can’t easily see what the participants are doing, how they’re feeling, etc., so it’s important to use all the tools Zoom has to offer. Practice sharing your screen, annotating, having your participants annotate, chat, and use breakout rooms. Using video can help improve engagement and interaction, allowing everyone to see what’s happening, and at the same time making it harder for someone to multitask or “tune out”.

The beauty of our VILTs is that it is a synchronous experience for you and your audience. Treat it as you would an in-person presentation by mixing it up every 5-10 minutes (discussions, polling, labs, breakout groups, chat, individual work, etc.). This will drive engagement and interest in your topic and keep participants involved and learning.