2 Lecture for large groups

A lecture for a large group is often characterised by knowledge transfer and is mainly one-way. Nevertheless, seeing the individual student is important for the learning process. Immerse yourself in online educational theory to stay connected with students, especially now that education takes place remotely.

Synchronous versus a-synchronous

Before you decide whether to offer your lecture live (synchronous) or non-live (a-synchronous), it’s a good idea to review the pros and cons of both options. A list of pros and cons can be found below.

Live lecture

Lecturing online will take some getting used to. Although the lecturer and student can see each other (usually with up to 4 people visible at the same time) facial expressions and body language are not as visible as in a classroom. However, it is possible to give and receive feedback online, so you will know if the offered material is understood. Below are two ways in which you can give online lessons, and, further down, there are some useful tips before you get started with this learning activity.

Useful tips & tricks

1. Make agreements with students about the work method used during this online lecture. Such as agreements on microphone use and asking questions, for example. See below for a useful list with rules of conduct.
2. Be clear on everything; indicate what the learning objective(s) is/are for the lecture and make it clear where you are in the course of the lecture (for example by working with tabs that are visible on your slides).
3. Limit yourself to the core of your lecture. Attending an online lecture is harder (and can be more tiring) than attending a physical lecture.
4. Use keywords and images as much as possible in your slides.
5. Finish the lecture with clear agreements on the next steps. What do you expect from your students, and where can they find the relevant information?
6. Increase engagement in the lecture by doing a short quiz halfway through.

Non-live lecture

Videos are a powerful tool that allow students to learn at a time and place of their choice. However, developing and recording videos is a time-consuming solution. Before you decide to record a video, first make an inventory of the added value for the students and what other possibilities there are. Which themes are they struggling with? What would you normally further elaborate on during the lectures? Maybe there already are video resources available. The media library staff is happy to help you find existing video resources. Below you will find a number of ways in which you can give an online lecture. Before you get started, take a look at the tips below.

Useful tips & tricks

1. Try to record several shorter films in which you refer to the previous (and following) parts, rather than recording one whole lecture.
2. Indicate what the learning or educational objectives of the lecture are.
3. Give the student an assignment to be made -while watching- about the lecture (and come back to it in a different way).
4. Tell the students where the lecture can be found and make sure (by saying it explicitly) that the lecture can easily be linked to other sources of information belonging to the same theme.

Sharing video’s through My Mediasite

You can share videos within RUAS through My Mediasite. Here you can manage your own content and have your own "channel", similar to YouTube, where you can indicate per video for which groups the video is visible (and therefore whether or not it should be public). If you..

• want to manage videos together with colleagues (all will be given administration rights);
• or offer videos grouped together (in a ‘channel’ on My Mediasite, similar to a Youtube channel;
• or want to have videos visible in the Showcase (accessible to all employees of Rotterdam University of Applied Sciences);

Here you can find instructional videos for My Mediasite.