8 Types of Online Students
I absolutely LOVE teaching music lessons from my home. After teaching more than a thousand students in this format in the past year, I’ve met the best students and enjoyed getting to know them! They are all lovable and unique in their own awesome ways.
I hope you enjoy my tongue-in-cheek take on 10 different types of online students. Fellow online teachers— have you come across any of these types yet?
THE BARKERS
We love our pets, but these students have what seems like a pack of wild wolves living in their house. BARK BARK BARK!
This is made even worse by the days I choose to wear earbuds and the barking is installed directly into my eardrums!
Bless the students who mute themselves until the angry tirade is over.
How to handle THE BARKERS: Turn your volume down stat!
CAN I SHOW YOU SOMETHING?
Once you open this flood gate, the pouring in of over-sharing begins… students love to show their art projects, their pets, their injuries, their family stories… and there’s always one student who gets it started!
How to handle CAN I SHOW YOU SOMETHING: “Let’s wait until the end of class and then you can show us after we’re done learning today!”
THE REBEL
THE REBEL always wants to get something going! In the chat, they’ll send fiery emojis, they’ll ask inflammatory questions, they’ll make off-color jokes, change their Zoom name to yours, write on your screen, and try to get everyone else involved!
How to handle THE REBEL: Play along and show them it doesn’t bother you! Then get right back to your lesson. They’ll love the engagement and the other learners will chuckle.
THE QUESTIONS
Their real hand is up AND their emoji hand is up. The hand starts waving back and forth as you’re giving your lesson. You call on the student and… “oh, it’s not really a question, I just…”
How to handle THE QUESTIONS: I like to designate certain parts of my classes for chit-chatting and questions. Most of my students know not to interrupt a lesson unless its a REAL QUESTION, but some of them are still in training. :)
THE ZOOM BACKGROUNDS
They’re at the beach. They’re on Mars. They’re in front of a picture of their family. Then suddenly they’ve taken a screen shot of the class and they’re in front of the classroom!
How to handle THE ZOOM BACKGROUNDS: Ask them questions randomly to make sure they are paying attention! But otherwise, I like to let them have fun with the technology that they’re using. Sometimes students learn more than what we are teaching them during class.
THE TEACHER
“Actually…”
“I learned this in another class…”
“I already know this.”
Can you hear me screaming from my desk? These students seem to already know it all and are already advanced scholars on the subject.
How to handle THE TEACHER: Give them their moment to shine but let them know that if they get a moment in the spotlight, so will everyone else. Sometimes these students are just competitive and want to “one-up” the other students. If we make it obvious that everyone is there to learn and will be treated as students of the subject, they will relax.
THE GHOST
Muted. No video. Barely a blip in the chat. Are you even real or am I just imagining you?
How to handle THE GHOST: Sometimes these students are just shy on camera, but are still active participants! Explain how to use emojis and chat so that these students can still express themselves and engage.
THE NO-SHOW
“I’m sorry we missed your class. Can we reschedule?”
Ouch. I’ve logged in and waited my designated amount of time and we have a NO SHOW! Ironically, I am waiting on a no-show as I type this!How to handle THE NO-SHOW: Make sure your cancellation policy is clearly stated when students sign up. I usually offer ONE courtesy refund or reschedule, but then after that it’s sticking with my cancellation policies! This seems harsh, but your time is valuable and this problem can spiral out of control.