Notes online teacher

A long time ago we started working on uznai.ru, a platform where you can conduct online classes (“webinars”) and lessons. There is a lot of work ahead, however, some conclusions can already be drawn.
During the test operation period, we conducted various courses there, including my “ Web at the service of business ”, and clarified the following patterns in the behavior of the public:

• Online lessons discipline students very much (as well as regular trainings and seminars): among those who enrolled in an online course, there are more people who complete their studies within a reasonable time than among those who decide to listen to the course in writing or buy a book.
• It is possible to attract the attention of the participants of the course so that within an hour they are almost not distracted by external stimuli and listened to the teacher. However, for this you need to create a special motivation among students, support it and prepare excellent presentations and lesson plans.
• Even if the schedule of online classes is known in advance, and participants are warned in advance about the classes, no more than 30% of those enrolled in the course attend classes. Many people expect to see classes in the record, but there is even less likelihood (non-urgency syndrome).
• Students rarely ask questions about the material and are usually not ready for the question-answer session after the class. This, however, repeats observations from ordinary lectures and seminars.
• Paid online seminars further motivate users: the response and effectiveness of training in paid seminars above.
• It is easy to recreate the atmosphere of a classic lecture or seminar online, but it is rather difficult - psychological training with group work and deep involvement. However, judging by the novelties of the software market and the development of technology, the solution to this problem is a matter of several years.

Recommendations to teachers is a separate big issue that can be discussed for a very long time (if enough attention is paid to this topic in the West, then we have very little; it’s enough to compare Russian and Western e-courses). However, I would like to immediately give a couple of recommendations to the participants of online seminars:

• Before the seminar, prepare a pen and paper (yes, in this case the traditional “paper” means are more convenient) for recording questions and notes.
• Before the seminar, think about what issues you would like to solve at the seminar. Write them down and check at the end of the seminar, before the question-answer session. If something remains unexplained, ask a question.
• Immediately inform the teacher about the problem with sound or other technical troubles. He probably does not know about them, and you will be very helpful.
• Shut down large downloads and torrents before starting classes :)
• Try not to be distracted during the session: just start, and half of the webinar will pass by. It is better to draw scribble on paper in the boring moments.
• Do not try to decide that it is not necessary to go to the online classes , if they are in the record! The point is not only that a live teacher will explain incomprehensible material to you, but also that “deferred motivation” significantly reduces the likelihood that you will spend some time on this seminar - especially if they accumulate.

Enjoy your training and useful courses!