Now I am going to share zoom tips for students.

First, I want to thank you for sitting through so many zoom classes.

How many hours of zoom is that…

Also, thank you for doing your best to keep learning.

Remember knowledge is power and skills will take you far-

GPA is important but only for your first graduate degree and then your first job-

So please focus on compounding knowledge, seeking wisdom, and developing skills-

God bless you

Here are some useful tips for students

1. Protect your eyes. Don’t stare at the screen unless you have to. If your classes allows you to have the camera off and you don’t have to participate or look at the slides then rest of your eyes. You have other classes that you have to either participate through zoom or watch intently. Protect your eyes. Take some supplements to like PreserVision to help out your eyes. Remember, you will needs those eyes for a long time.
2. If there is no attendance points and the lecture is recorded, don’t come to zoom class just to stare at your screen. Staring at the screen is waste of time and bad for your health, so if there is no attendance and if the lecture is recorded and you don’t think you can learn effectively, then it is better to take a break. Staring blankly will only make you feel worse and more tired. So those days that you can’t focus better to rest and watch the recorded zoom session later. Remember your time and health are precious.
3. Attend the lecture standing up or walk around. It is likely that you have sit for long hours for your zoom lectures. Sitting is not good for your health. So either listen to the lecture while standing up or just walk around time to time. Better blood circulation, more oxygen to your brain and more effective learning.
4. Multitask during lectures. If it is recorded, you can definitely multitask and you won’t miss much. Even if you miss it you can go back. Before I would not allow students to eat during class because of the smell. But now it’s your room, so eat if you want- I have seen a student with a bicycle machine in the room so you can burn some calories while listening to the lecture. As long as you can concentrate why not? If you can’t concentrate then don’t multitask of course- Be wise
5. Don’t binge watch the recorded lectures. I have seen top school students just skip the majority of lectures and binge watch later. It’s not Netflix! Don’t do it! Your brain can’t process so much information at once unless you are extremely smart. Most students are smart but not extremely smart so don’t binge watch recorded lectures. You will feel miserable.
6. Don’t do all your homework and projects at once. All-nighters, somethings that college students do- because they probably procrastinated and now they have to pay the price with no sleep. So before COVID19, all-nighters was sort of fun and romantic. You would just spend the whole night in the library with your friends. Building camaraderie, going on late night snacks (e.g. McDonalds or anything that was open at 2:00AM) and talking about everything except the stuff that you need to complete by the deadline. It’s just fun times. Also, there is some romance…not always but I have seen couples form through long hours at the library. But now, if you do an all-nighter, it is no fun. You are probably alone or with a roommate or family member. Alone, you really feel miserable. With a roommate or family, they are worried because you are not sleeping. So even the fun of all-nighter has been blown away- So don’t procrastinate and do your work in an efficient manner.
7. Talk to your professor and ask for some accommodation. I know that many students abuse the accommodation policy. I know because I get asked a lot of things from extra credit to no homework and no test…Well, professors have to stand their ground and ensure you learn. So we can’t just accommodate everything. But there are times that there is too much because of tsunami of homework and project of zoom classes. In such cases, do ask your professor. Make sure you state clearly why you need accommodation and be polite. Most professors want to ensure that student learn and are not overstressed. So always ask

Thank You Jesus for all the wonderful students. I pray that You give them wisdom and peace. Amen!

If you enjoy the content, you can support the blog through clicking the referral links that I use in my life: Acorns, Robinhood, American Express, dropbox, evernote, and Scribd.

I thought this is neat-

Then COVID19 hit and we all went to ZOOMMMMM-

Too bad I didn’t buy the zoom stock…I was thinking about it and then it went up and up and that was that- I thought $150 was expensive… Lesson learned-

After having taught 3 zoom classes, I think I can share some tips that have worked.

1. Record your zoom class. Believe it or not…not every professor does it…whoa! Shock! But record it and the students can watch it later at their own pace. Also, upload the class asap. I know you may have multiple classes but try to upload as fast as possible and students will appreciate it.
2. Keep classes short. We teach 3-4 classes, the students take 4-5 different classes and zoom fatigue is real. Some have classes back to back. So staring at the screen for 5-6 hrs will burn their retinas and cause extreme fatigue. To help out my students, I try to keep my classes as short as possible and rarely I go over time. I also tell students to rest if they need to because the lecture is being recorded so they can come back later.
3. Record and upload complicated topics. The students are already tired of zoom. So the last thing they want to see is more zoom with lot of complicated material. So if I am covering something that is theoretical or that it requires a lot explanation, I just record a video and upload it. Then in class, I take questions (much more efficient). It is more work for the professor but it is all about learning.
4. Be an entertainer. Often I teach night classes so the students are already tired. So to cheer them up and to keep them focused, I tell a lot of jokes and try to make the class amusing. Of course, I am far from funny. But when you are tired somethings just sound funnier. So it works. My advisor said teaching is a class is like delivering show. And my show tends to be mediocre but not terrible comedy. Some students find my jokes funny (that is what the reviews say…).
5. Don’t give too much homework! Professors are afraid that students are slacking off. The students are…so in order to make sure they are learning. More homework and projects have been added. This is not a good strategy. Because you are only adding to your course. But other professors are doing the same. So at the end the students drown in homework and projects! Don’t overburden your student!
6. Minimum group work. I try to keep group work to a minimum because their eyes hurt due to all the Zoom classes. Then they have to meet again for more group work zoom…too much ZOOM! I always encourage students to try to keep group meetings short as possible.
7. Use critical thinking questions for quizzes and tests or substitute with a project. Online class has increased the likelihood of cheating. Of course, you can use different versions of exams and use camera or Proctorio to monitor but they can still cheat. A better way is to use critical thinking questions that they can’t easily google or ask. For me, this has worked well as I teach financial statement analysis. I can go pick a small firm that there is no information on Google. Substituting an exam with a project is not a bad idea but remember that students already have too much homework and projects.

I hope these tips are useful. It is all about maximizing learning

Please share other great zoom class tips in the comments ^^

Thank You Jesus for zoom. We are thankful that we can continue to teach even during these challenging times. Please protect and bless us. Amen!

If you enjoy the content, you can support the blog through clicking the referral links that I use in my life: Acorns, Robinhood, American Express, dropbox, evernote, and Scribd.