Advice from Eastern Teachers on How to Manage the Blank Screen of Zoom Misery
By Tyler Foley
By Tyler Foley
Our teacher tells us cheerfully that they have set aside 20 minutes for us to work on some questions together in small groups, and I’ve been thrown into a random breakout room. As I glance at my monitor, a feeling of dread settles in. The whole screen is black, and all my classmates have their cameras off and mics off.
“Hello?” I ask into the void. “Hello?!” No one responds.
At this point, some kids might call the teacher into the room. Me, I don’t like to get anyone in trouble. And besides that kid who is not feeling talkative is sometimes me and, well, we’re in a pandemic and everyone deserves a break. So I just strum my fingers, try to find fun websites that aren’t blocked by the Montgomery Public Schools filters, while procrastinating on the group assignment that is not actually turning out to be a group assignment.
This isn’t the first time this has happened, and it won’t be the last.
Given that we will all continue to have some or all of our classes virtually the rest of the school year or longer, I asked a few teachers for their advice about navigating breakout rooms and here is what they had to say.
Eastern teacher, Mr. Obadele Brown’s advice:
Ms. Nancy C. Fiallo, the 6th grade counselor for students with last names M-Z, said some kids are naturally more comfortable sharing outside of a formal setting and others will stay quiet unless prompted.
“I understand the quandary,” she said, “and think that somebody in the breakout room must take charge.”
She said if the teacher did not give everyone a role, then a student “should decide to take over and decide who is the facilitator, who is the note taker, etc. And keep the group moving by asking each person in the group questions and invite their input.”
“Hello?” I ask into the void. “Hello?!” No one responds.
At this point, some kids might call the teacher into the room. Me, I don’t like to get anyone in trouble. And besides that kid who is not feeling talkative is sometimes me and, well, we’re in a pandemic and everyone deserves a break. So I just strum my fingers, try to find fun websites that aren’t blocked by the Montgomery Public Schools filters, while procrastinating on the group assignment that is not actually turning out to be a group assignment.
This isn’t the first time this has happened, and it won’t be the last.
Given that we will all continue to have some or all of our classes virtually the rest of the school year or longer, I asked a few teachers for their advice about navigating breakout rooms and here is what they had to say.
Eastern teacher, Mr. Obadele Brown’s advice:
- Get everyone comfortable! I suggest some sort of icebreaker/game to get everyone at ease.
- Make sure everyone knows what the topic is! Have the questions on directions posted so everyone can see and refer to.
- Elect a student leader to get things going! A lot of times it's just hard to start, have a few responses that will get others engaged.
Ms. Nancy C. Fiallo, the 6th grade counselor for students with last names M-Z, said some kids are naturally more comfortable sharing outside of a formal setting and others will stay quiet unless prompted.
“I understand the quandary,” she said, “and think that somebody in the breakout room must take charge.”
She said if the teacher did not give everyone a role, then a student “should decide to take over and decide who is the facilitator, who is the note taker, etc. And keep the group moving by asking each person in the group questions and invite their input.”