3 Seconds & online learning

The average educator waits between 0.7 and 1.4 seconds after they ask a question. If no one answers it in that time, the teacher answers the question for themselves. Either that, or they rush on to the next topic.

We’ve all been there. Participants will draw their favourite inference about the educator if this happens. In any learning situation – online or face-to-face – it can seem like an eternity to leave an unanswered question hanging out there – for everyone.

Some will watch the session drown. Some may try to rescue the teacher – and their own discomfort. A trainer or facilitator may get a response in one second, but if the only responses we get come from one second of reflection time, we are not going very deep.

The learning problem this poses is important, though, beyond the status of the person facilitating the session.

Three seconds

The evidence suggests there is a huge benefit if we can get past this. Just two seconds more. It’s not a huge difference, but researcher Mary Budd Rowe observed that when teachers waited at least three seconds for a response, they saw the following:

• Increased length of response
• More questions from participants
• More unsolicited responses
• Higher ratings of student confidence
• A rise in speculative and evidence-inference questions

Importantly, too, the number of times people did not answer questions fell. Some questions may require much more than three seconds. So how can we move towards thinking and reflecting space. How can we engage participants when there is a pause?

Online but not on-point

As we will see, this is even more important to deal with in online learning. I appreciated a recent article by Rachel Smith about this for online learning: https://digitalfacilitation.net/?p=641 I wanted to extend on her excellent suggestions.

When we are online it is not the same as being in a conference room or a workshop face-to-face. Especially now, we are often among the props of home life. Dogs are running around...People are cooking dinner, minding children or sports on mute in the background…

That advice to nervous speakers might be literally true: “Imagine your audience in their underwear.” We might be in our pyjama bottoms ourselves!

There can be a strong fight to maintain presence with people who are there-but-not-there. So, from the beginning, we want to set the stage for reflection and participation in thoughtful engagement.

Priming the pump

It best starts before the webinar begins. Ask people to come having reflected on a guiding question for the session. If it is a learning session on online learning, for instance, it might be, “How can we increase the potential for learning in online programs?”

Distribute an article, or a 3-minute video, and ask people to start reflecting in written comments. You are signalling from the start that they are co-participants in the process.

If there is a lot of content to deliver, offer the “flipped classroom” approach. Put the information online beforehand. If people are passively receiving information during the webinar, it is hard to set the tone to “participate” afterwards.

When we are going to ask a question, or ask for a response, it helps to prime the pump again. Any time you are going to provide information for more than a few seconds, suggest to participants that they go on alert.

For example, you might say, “As I talk about this, think about how this applies to your work, and I’ll ask for your response at the end.”

Or, “Listen to this and think about what is high need or high opportunity for you. We can talk about this in a moment.”

Smith suggests we ask an open question instead of a closed question. Instead of “Do you have any questions?” you might ask “What questions do you have?” You might ask a pointed question such as: “How does this relate to what we were talking about a few moments ago, when we were talking about Terry’s problem?”

Holding out for depth

Another technique, if nothing is coming forth, is to go to purposeful reflection. The classic is to ask participants to grab a piece of paper and write down what they are struck by, or how this connects to their main question. You have removed some of the stress of a spontaneous response in front of the group, and given them time to engage the reflective parts of their brains.

Many webinar technologies allow for “pair and share,” with breakout rooms. This is an opportunity to send them off in groups of 2-3 to reflect together. Then they can debrief with the larger group when they get back. Rather than reporting back on everything, you might just ask, “What were the highlights of your small group discussion?”

Bring participants on-board

Finally, in the moment, it’s always helpful to name the problem. Discussing how long the average person waits after asking a question, for instance. Take “a strategic sip of tea” and tell the group what you are doing. “I’m just waiting to see what may be coming up for someone.” Eight out of ten times that’s where someone brings up their question or insight.

An intrinsic part of any learning program

There are many more options available, I’m sure, and I hope you’ll share them with me. The question of how to engage people in a learning situation is more than how to fix an awkward pause, but how do we engage people in the whole architecture of a program. This is particularly interesting in on-line learning, since the structures are different from face-to-face.

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If you are interested in more about online learning, you might check out the following 2-hour practical session

Moving to Online Engagement

A short and practical help session on using digital learning, and what mistakes to avoid

Tuesday 24 March 10 – 11:30 AEST (one spot left)

Thursday 26 March 10 – 11:30 AEST

Suddenly you learn you need to take your work online. You are told you can simply point a laptop into the room and do what you did before, but digitally. You can collaborate, teach, meet or facilitate a workshop. It will be easy, right?

No.

This is perfect for you if you are asking:

• How do I transition to effective online engagement quickly, without time to build a fancy platform?
• I have some experience using zoom, but what am I missing that someone with experience would know?
• Can I get complex, in-depth discussion online, like I do face-to-face?

What you’ll get:

• Hands-on practice with lesser-known Zoom tools
• Templates and examples for both simple and more transformational online learning plans
• How to avoid the big three mistakes almost all people new to online engagement make.

“Kirk has created a really practical online workshop that will help me take my live experiential workshops into the online world. One of the best bits was when he put us in the driver’s seat to try things for ourselves. I left with a long list of processes to practice and tools to use. I reckon some of us left a lot calmer and more confident that we can make the leap.” —Jacinta Cubis

Email here for enrolments, pre-course reflection and materials

10 people in each session for hands-on practice using technology

AUSD $180

On-going support, background booklet and follow-up included