In their post, wanqinjiang68 outline an activity that relies on an in-person presentation on a topic of Economics. One of the barriers that they addressed was the element of having to be in-person, especially in the situation if a lock down were to occur. I really appreciate how they would take pre-emptive action by having learners understand the virtual platforms that are accessible to them. When transitioning online, there is a high chance for confusion and stress. Some learners can find it difficult to navigate and virtual help without sharing a screen can be tedious and induce anxiety in learners. By choosing to demonstrate these online tools in-person, it allows students who struggle the opportunity to have that much needed instructor support.
The second barrier that came up was students not engaging in other groups’ presentations with the solution of a quiz that would follow soon after. While I do like this idea to engage students I do see where a quiz may be problematic. Would it create more work for the instructor? Or would the students come up with the questions themselves? Who would get what quiz? An alternative solution would be feedback cards. Students write some detailed feedback on cards of the presentation. The instructor reviews the cards (primarily to make sure they are all constructive and respectful) before handing them over to the group. Additionally, this adds to creating a class community that supports student voice, reflection, respect, and belonging. This can also be done in an online sphere instead of a physical card.
