By Chris Fulton, Centre for Teaching and Learning Enhancement

At a lunchtime gathering on 13 November, Prof. Ricardo Moutinho and Prof. Bingpu Zhou shared their experiences on issues relating to learner-centred teaching with technology, and participants discussed best teaching practices. Prof. Moutinho presented practical benefits from recording and analyzing one’s classroom teaching activities. Prof. Zhou shared illustrative examples of how teachers can realize a more interactive classroom environment and collect real-time feedback from students for teaching improvement. Following each presentation, the participants discussed and exchanged views on best teaching practices and strategies with and without technology.

One talking point centered around building rapport with students and ensuring students are comfortable participating in classroom activities. Strategies that were mentioned included: putting students into pairs or groups to discuss questions or prepare a response or answer; scaffolding activities so that students are better prepared to participate; using technology such as online polls or buzzers (buzzin.live) when students are in groups. These types of tools and strategies help encourage students to participate more in classroom activities.

A discussion on the use of video recording raised a variety of potential uses and applications. First, video recordings of a teacher’s classroom practice can be analyzed to reveal insight into one’s teaching practices, or kept as an item in one’s teaching portfolio. Another application might involve recording a lab demonstration, a technical procedure, or even interviewing skills and using the recording as an instructional resource that can be reviewed by students. Lastly, colleagues asserted that any recording of video requires the consent of all people in a classroom.

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