Teaching with Zoom

Quick-Step Guide (PDF)

Practice using Zoom in advance. Test your audio and video. Be sure light is on your face and that your background and desktop are free of distractions. Practice looking at your webcam, not the screen when you present. Practice sharing your screen. (See Testing computer or device audio and Share Screen).
Review your host controls and meeting settings. Determine whether you’ll include other hosts or co-hosts, mute participant microphones (muting recommended for large groups), or record the session for use at a later time. (See Host Controls, Managing participants in a meeting, and recording).
- If creating a Zoom meeting in Canvas, the default is set to Enable Waiting Room. This prevents a student from entering before you and be listed as host, but you will have to admit each student. If you do not want to do this, uncheck Waiting Room, but DO NOT "Enable join before host" as this may assign the host to the first person in the meeting.
Consider making slides or discussion questions available in advance in Canvas, etc. so that students can access the content if screen sharing does not work.
Anticipate potential challenges including the possibility that students don’t have ideal connections and aren’t able to hear and see everything perfectly.

Display an agenda at the start of the class session so that students know what to expect of the shared time together.
Narrate the material that you’re displaying visually on the screen. Just as you might read materials aloud in class, read screen material that you share on-screen just in case students are not able to see essential text.
Post discussion questions in your slides so these can be visible to students who may have a slow Internet connection or who may struggle to hear the audio.

Use chat to troubleshoot technical problems at the start of a meeting. If you have a TA who can support the class instruction with technical help, this would also be a good person to respond to troubleshooting tips in the chat.
Check the chat often to identify student questions and areas of interest or confusion. For larger classes, assign a TA to moderate the chat and make sure important questions and comments are addressed. Even for smaller classes, it may be worthwhile to ask a student (or two) to take on special roles as “chat monitors” to voice if there are questions that arise that the instructor has missed.
Use chat to engage students in discussion. Pause often during a lecture to ask a question and invite students to answer or comment. “Call on” students with a text question or comment to elaborate.

Use the polling tool within Zoom to collect student responses, and then share results with both in-person and online students. (See Polling for Meetings).
- NOTE: If using the integrated Zoom in Canvas, you will need to download the polling csv file, add your questions, and upload the file to your session.
Use breakout rooms to help students talk in smaller groups, just as they would do break-out groups in a larger class environment. As the instructor, you can visit the breakout rooms, broadcast messages to various rooms, and end the breakout sessions when it is time to regroup. (See Getting Started with Breakout Rooms and Managing Video Breakout Rooms).
Consider asking students to work together as a large group or breakout groups on a shared Google Doc (instructor sharing a document or students using Canvas Collaborations).

If you are using the cloud version of Zoom (from MyUWF), you will find your recordings under the Recorded link at the top of your account page. Click on the Open button. On the next page, you can download or copy the link to your session. You can paste this link into your course or email it to your students.
If you are using the integrated Zoom from within Canvas, your Zoom recordings are located on a Recordings tab that students can access by clicking on Zoom on the course navigation menu. You will need to publish your recordings for students to be able to access them.