Tutorial for distance on-line learning (by EDUMOTIVA)

4.1. Scenario for synchronous online teaching

During synchronous online teaching with Zoom, teacher aims to engage students as much as possible by deploying all the available tools. Chat, screen annotation, polling, breakout rooms and white board are some of them. Students’ role and active learning strategies, are vital elements for a successful class and are teacher’s responsibilities.

Initially, teacher can ask students for chat replies in the question “Do you know what python’s function are? Have you ever use functions in any other programming language? ”. Zoom’s poll option can be utilized alternatively. Once teacher receives feedback in chat (or poll), could make a small talk with students (using raise hand option in Zoom) knowing now students’ familiarization with this particular topic. Then, a Power Point presentation will be shared with the students showing function’s essential characteristic.

Continuously, having complete the abovementioned task, teacher sharing its screen and introduce a simple python program which uses a function, in Pythontutor.

The goal is teacher to explain how functions are called via python code. When students have no more questions, teacher can open Jupyter notebook or Google’s colab to run a simple program with a function. Furthermore, teacher can share its code with students via a link and urge them to run it. As long as, everyone have run the code, teacher presents one or two extra examples hence, students get familiarize with functions. Then teacher could divide students into teams with up to four (4) students maximum, using Zoom’s breakout rooms, for assigning them a specific task for ten (10) minutes. The simple task could be: “write a program in python to read two (2) numbers and calculate the maximum number by deploying a function which will accept two (2) parameters and return the biggest between them”. After the predefined time passed and all students return from breakout rooms, each team will present its solution. Additionally, breakout rooms can be exploit for small group (up to six (6) students) discussions (ideas exchange amongst team members) the result of which will be exposed to the class whereas teacher can keep notes in Zoom’s whiteboard making them visible by anyone. Some topics that must be discussed are “when we have to use function?” or “how big a function could be?”. During the aforementioned tasks, teacher and students use Jupyter or Google’s colab.

At the end of the class, teacher should evaluate students’ progress which is a crucial factor for distance learning success. Evaluation can combine a Nearpod Quiz, a Zoom or Nearpod poll or any other suitable activity.