Twelve Tips for Effective Moderation of Virtual

Classrooms

Coach Carole’s Workshop 2

Tip 1: Be prepared

1. Identify the purpose, style, title and content of presentation with your team

2. Prepare your Powerpoint slides to engage and summarise

3. Consider relevant interactivities to suit the group

4. Prepare an outline of the session

5. Book an Elluminate room with your administrator

6. Days before the event check that you can access an Elluminate Room from your PC

Tip 2: Be organised

1. Enlist the aid of an IT support person if you are behind a firewall

2. Login to the room at least 20 minutes prior to starting time to allow for any technical difficulties

3. Upload PPT slides, multimedia and shared files as required

4. Create Breakout rooms if required upload slides there too for group work

5. Check your audio equipment on entry6. Organise your materials, web links, prompts etc.

Tip 3: Arrange for a co-moderator1. Notify the co-moderator of date, time and location

send invites with URLs if appropriate

2. Identify the role each moderator will play before the session begins

3. Check with co-moderator about archiving, saving whiteboards, keeping notes, keeping times etc Listen to this beginner Moderator for tips

Tip 4: Practice multi-tasking

1. Select the wide layout of Elluminate windows to view the text chat area more comfortably

2. During the event scroll the chat area to ensure that you can read and take in those comments, questions etc

3. Scribe on the whiteboard • select a smaller font size from the palette for typing in text

4. Use the pointers and other whiteboard tools to highlight

5. Ask participants to use the emoticons wherever relevant

Tip 5: Plan to focus

1. Login from a quiet space

2. Turn off phones

3. Switch off email notifications

4. Keep your session plan and notes beside you

5. Establish protocols for questions

Tip 6: Plan to be interactive

Use the whiteboard

tools

Use the Chat

pod and the

Audio tools

Tip 7: Create or update profile1. Select your own name in participant list

2. Right click to select the profiler

3. Complete your details as preferred

4. Upload an image

Note: suggest this action as an icebreaker

Tip 8: Take your own notes

Click the Show/Hide Notes window icon to activate

1. Have a notepad and pen beside you or open up Notepad or use the Elluminate notepad

Tip 9: Save the chat text

Select the

Save icon

Select a folder and give the

file a name

Tip 10: Save the whiteboards

Select the

Save icon

Choose a folder and

select PDF

format

Tip 11: Use breakout rooms1. Divide the participants into groups of 5 or less

do this by the hands up or alphabetical order

2. Provide everyone with clear instructions on what they are expected to do in the rooms allow at least 10-15 minutes for the group work to happen

3. Have a moderator for each room if possible or at least a leader

4. Upload all slides to the main room (and copy the individual slides for the breakout rooms using the screen organiser) this tool is in Tools, Whiteboard, manage screens

5. Ask each room moderator to copy their board to themain room

Tip 12: Use multi-media effectively1. Upload any files required before session

begins: Flash, Mpg or Quicktime movies Some may be pre-uploaded in the SAS system

2. Access and upload any shared files before session begins: Documents, flyers, questionnaires etc

3. Create quiz file before session begins Multiple-choice, True/False