The silence of Zoom or Google Meet is deafening. I miss noisy classrooms and side chatter about the latest high school event. What I once tried to redirect into conversations about course content is the very talk I miss the most. As we oscillate in between remote and hybrid learning and remote again, students feel dejected and disheartened. They need to be empowered and given their voice, and they need to feel in control of something. How do we encourage them to use their voices and feel as though they were heard amidst uncertainty?
Focus on social-emotional learning.
Let students ask questions even to the questions to which we don't have answers. Validate their feelings by acknowledging uncertainty and how we feel about it, too. Let them know that the line of communication is always open - whether it be through an email, private message on a chat, a Flipgrid response, or a one-on-one conversation. Encourage students to share how they feel with teachers, peers, and families, but then redirect those feelings into a positive outcome. Model reframing emotions and provide ways to cope.
Get students into small groups.
I have recently been exploring different ways to break students into groups or give them opportunities to collaborate. Since the beginning of the semester, I have been using genetic templates and randomizing students into groups using Flippity.net. I am now trying to find more opportunities for small group work through digital station rotation. Creating breakout room templates or work through station activities encourages collaboration and communication. Students are far more likely to unmute when they have a clear task and are in a smaller setting. These stations may be individual work or group work, but the flexibility and the sense of movement encourage students to participate and actively engaged.
Focus on the positives.
Let students ask questions even to the questions to which we don't have answers. Validate their feelings by acknowledging uncertainty and how we feel about it, too. Let them know that the line of communication is always open - whether it be through an email, private message on a chat, a Flipgrid response, or a one-on-one conversation. Encourage students to share how they feel with teachers, peers, and families, but then redirect those feelings into a positive outcome. Model reframing emotions and provide ways to cope.
Encourage students to write, speak, and communicate verbally AND nonverbally.
Students can share their voices in multiple ways. While many struggle to unmute themselves on Zoom, they are often willing to engage in other modalities. While writing or participating on a tool like Pear Deck may feel passive, students are far more likely to open up and engage in self-disclosure when they feel safe. Online students can be anonymous - to share their voices and perspectives in what seems like a low-stakes way. Building a community and environment that feels safe and inviting each day will lead to an increased level of engagement over time. They will start to share more. Using a tool like Pear Deck has allowed me to give every student a voice. I can track who hasn't participated or responded, and I can problem them further. Repeatedly completing a weekly check-in on Flipgrid has become a habit. Students know what they will be asked to do, and they are familiar with the types of questions they will be asked. As a result, they speak longer and in more detail.
Not only do students communicate with the words they speak or write, but they also communicate nonverbally. Their expressions, gestures, and even the emojis they drop in a chat convey strong feelings and emotions. Encouraging students to use their nonverbals intentionally can teach students that they are constantly communicating and have the power to send strong messages without even realizing that they are sending messages. By observing themselves and others on digital platforms like Zoom and Google Meet, they can even learn how to better control and communicate nonverbally with intentionality.
Respond and provide feedback.
Each week, my students complete a social-emotional check-in via Flipgrid. They know that I watch every single video (on x2 speed) and respond to each one. It's time-consuming, but it is a labor of love. They email me with responses to my follow-up videos; they appreciate that I respond. While these videos cannot fully replicate constant banter in the classroom that occurs face-to-face, this feedback creates connection. Students feel heard, and they know that they matter.
In large group discussions or presentations, students need feedback, too. Noting their nonverbals, encouraging students to drop messages in the chat, and replying specifically to public comments or anonymous comments on tools like Pear Deck validate students' ideas and contributions to the class. Every little piece of feedback matters and is an opportunity to forge a connection. When students feel like they matter, they work harder and are more engaged.
The red slash through the microphone is like a slash to my heart. My classroom's quietness does sadden me, but I am reminded that even though the fruits of my labor might not always be visible, the seeds are still taking root. A great deal of our communication is nonverbal; a majority of our messages lie in the moments we are not speaking. As teachers during a pandemic, we need to reframe our minds to what learning looks like and also reflect on how we can create more opportunities to amplify student voice. While circling the wagon may not be possible right now, we can still rally our students and empower them to use their words in private and public ways. Our students' ideas matter; we just have to find ways to open the channel of communication so that their messages are heard.
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