Strategies for Video Messaging online students
With fully online courses it is often difficult to develop community among the class or to make the course feel personable to students. One easy thing to incorporate that may help partially overcome these barriers is to send out regular video messages.
I personally utilize both written and video instructions for each module and send an email with written instructions and video instructions as needed – typically once every 2 weeks. Sometimes it is simply a check-in and a study skill or two related to the particular content. Occasionally my dog will make a cameo which gives students a small look into my life creating a bit more of a connection. I’ve also invited students to do their introduction as a video (though video is optional, most students do this).
To keep things simple, I utilize zoom to record and Kaltura to publish. Simply open up your zoom and record to the cloud. I can screen share items easily and give very specific instructions with a ‘show and tell’ screen share. I then publish from Kaltura (I won’t go into detail on that, but it is a very easy process). I simply add the link to emails or place that link at the top of a module and title it ‘video instruction for module x’. I don’t edit or re-record small mistakes as we are never ‘perfect’ in a live class.
Try sending a video in the next week or two. It could be a simple hello/check-in/reminder of office hours or something more specific to the class.
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