Considering the seriousness and trepidation circumscribing the outbreak of the novel coronavirus, most schools around the world have turned to virtual learning. The ambiguity hovering over this global pandemic has made it difficult for people to guess the time of the year around which things can be expected to get back to normal. Therefore, the only viable recourse to keep the students on track and nurture their habit of sticking to an academic curriculum throughout the year seems to be online learning.

Easier said than done, there are innumerable complex layers that sturdily guard the concept of virtual classroom and make it difficult for some schools to achieve their goals through it. However, now that online learning is the only feasible solution for combatting the challenges of COVID-19, the management and teachers of the schools must fortify themselves with the required sets of knowledge and effective tools to make the process a tad more affluent for the learners.

In the following segment, we will be outlining some of the best strategies that the schools can rely upon to facilitate virtual learning when their brick-and-mortar buildings are closed.

• Analyze the needs of the participants

Before delineating and rolling out the plans for virtual learning, the schools must take the requirements of both the participants (the teachers and the students) into account. More often than not, replicating a policy undertaken by any of the contemporaries backfires because the rudimentary needs and objectives of the schools differ even though they abide by similar curriculums.

Thus, to make the arrangement work, schools must know what kind of online learning would be suitable for the teachers and learners and whether or not, they have the necessary tools and technologies at their disposal. If the authorities learn beforehand that the students are likely to come across a few glitches while following the lectures, they can create different accommodations that would render them with more flexibility and better scopes for communication.

• Record the lessons on digital documents

Just to be on the safer side of the spectrum and ensure that the students are not missing out on anything, the teachers can record their instructions for an entire lesson on digital documents or slides that can be accessed anytime, anywhere. The document slides are similar to assignment files that contain every detail of the subjects they are dealing with starting from the directions and relevant resources to significant links and tests needed to thoroughly understand the lesson.

It would be rather wise if all the teachers of the school follow the same format and structure of crafting these digital documents because then the learners would find it easy to browse through them. Additionally, the directions of the lessons should be simple and consistent so that if the students stumble upon a problem that needs to be resolved urgently, their families can lend a hand of support.

• Schedule online discussions

Needless to say, in a school, the teachers assigned for each class do not work in isolation from one another. It is only when they discuss their targets and set goals for the learners that their stratagems bear fruits. This is fairly the reason why the schools must allocate virtual office hours and discussion groups for the teachers to come together, address the issues with online learning, if any, and deliver the students and their families with additional support.

Besides, some of these groups can be meant for peer collaboration as well. A common tendency amongst students when they attend a class is that they ask for help from their friends when stuck with some topic. There are a lot of learners who are more comfortable with the idea of clarifying a doubt from their peers rather than their teachers. Thereby, online discussion groups can encourage these practices despite being shifted to the virtual platform. 

• The slow learners must not be left behind

This guiding principle is especially suitable for the students who are below the grade-level and thus, need extra attention. Just like in a physical classroom where learners are differentiated in terms of their merit, the online spaces must offer the same prospects. Students who learn at a slow pace should be backed by enough time and opportunities to catch up with their classmates and most importantly, absorb the directives of the lessons. The aim is to create a level playing field for everyone and make sure that in testing times like this, the potential obstacles are reduced in number.

How to enhance the experience of virtual learning?

Honestly, most of you, who are relatively new to this domain of virtual learning, might presume that the procedure of setting it up and conducting it as something very daunting. Nonetheless, the truth is, when you have a trustworthy virtual address service to rely on for all your needs, the whole arrangement will seem exceedingly simple and hassle-free. For the uninitiated, a virtual address service is meant to generate unique email addresses for the students who up on their platform so that the latter can receive mail correspondences related to the virtual classes from their schools without any additional trouble whatsoever. The necessity of having a physical email address that can be accessed from anywhere and at any time goes without saying, especially in testing times like these.