I’ve been wanting to start a blog about my experience teaching undergrads for a while now, but haven’t taken the plunge for various reasons. Now that the Covid19 pandemic is forcing us all to teach online, I thought it might be worthwhile to share how I’m dealing with everything that comes with that. The hope is that this might become a medium to share and receive ideas, or if nothing else, a sense of solidarity.
I’m writing this first post one day before my first online class. I’ll be using Zoom on my laptop for sharing video, and I will be sharing my iPad screen where I’ll be writing down notes for the students to read. I will post an update with how it goes tomorrow!
For now, here’s my list of everything I plan on having on my desk and apps I will be using on my devices while teaching, in no particular order.
- My laptop, with Zoom Web Conferencing installed.
- My iPad Air, with Notability for taking notes, and Desmos for quickly referencing graphs that I can’t draw by hand.
- Apple Pencil.
- My trusty bluetooth earphones with mic.
- A cup of chai (black tea, brewed in hot water and steeped in warm milk)
- Facial tissues.
- A glass of water.
- My handwritten notes: One page with just the outline of the lecture, divided into 5-10 minute chunks, one notebook with detailed notes, solved examples, etc.
- The textbook, just in case.
(Am I going overboard with this? I don’t know, but I’m of the view that being over-prepared is better than being under-prepared.)
Wish me luck!
Maryam Khaqan 