Stay after zoom session to talk with individual students

Today, we show you how to provide students the chance to talk with you at the end of an online class session.

When we teach in a classroom on campus, students enter and exit the classroom at different times and speeds.  We all have students who like to come up to the front of the room after you've dismissed the class and ask you a personal question or tell you something about their own situation.  This is a valuable way to build relationships with individual students and to reassure them that you've heard their concerns.  There is a simple way to mimic this in the online environment!

At the end of your zoom class session, don't "end meeting" right away.  Keep the meeting open and let students leave, or "walk out the door", when they are ready.  This is a gentler way to end class, rather than abruptly shutting down the connection.  Just as you choose to stick around in the classroom or rush off to your next class when teaching on campus, you can decide how long to keep the room open to allow students the chance to casually ask you one more question.  Similarly, consider opening your zoom room up early to allow students to connect with you and each other before class begins.