Engaging Students In Virtual Instruction With the Camera Off

As remote learning became the norm, some of my students began to not-so-subtly indicate that something was wrong. During a guest lecture on Zoom, several typically engaged students had their cameras turned off. One student stopped attending synchronous class meetings, and another stopped submitting assignments.

In conversation, it became apparent that these students wanted to remain engaged with learning—but didn’t want cameras on. I realized that I needed to reassess how I determined students’ engagement: by looking at their faces.

Here are some ways I’ve found to maintain community during virtual learning—while allowing students to make a choice about whether or not to turn on their cameras…………………………………………………………………………