Summer Camps

The pandemic restrictions are still on, and feeling discouraged from vacationing, I opted for a staycation. I was more nudged towards that decision by the circumstances. Remembering last summer, full of learning and creating, experimenting and productivity, I wanted to reward myself with some free time. Knitting and doing puzzles are my main daily activities! I also create and edit videos for my YouTube channel — it has become a weekly routine by now. My yoga classes are still on, but there’s enough time in a day for some ‘teacher-learning’.

Back in winter, as I was finalizing my big online course (on how to create online courses 👩🏽‍🎓👩🏽‍🏫), I bookmarked the Google Teacher Center. I had already done a few certifications, but none of them was for Google tools. So, why not do it in July and August!? I first started with the Fundamentals course. One of the first units makes you explore GEGs — Google Educator Groups. I found out there was none in Morocco, so I joined the Global one. And there it was — the Bootcamp announcement. Perfect timing! I registered for both Level 1 and 2, and watched the three-hour bonanza. The width of the range of tools they cover is enormous. The Bootcamp is split over two days, and each day they cover five different Applications. First half hour is used to pump up the energy and share housekeeping info.

There are two MCs — and all presenters come in couples. Although it’s a live event and they address the participants’ questions almost immediately, the dialogue style of presentation makes it flow really dynamically, with presenters quizzing (and sometimes roasting) each other. Three hours really flew by quickly! As I am quite familiar with all Google Education Tools, I watched the second day on a replay at 1.5x speed, and some segments even at 2x. It’s a great way to revise before the exam, in combination with the end-of-unit questions from the course. I passed the Level 1, and in two weeks I’ll be doing level 2. I just want to make sure I watch the Bootcamp — both for the smart revision and for entertainment.

Here are the main takeaways which I will try to incorporate in my future (online) workshops:

• Focused, hyped and dynamic segments.
• Three or four specific skills covered, explained and learned in half an hour
• Presenters come in couples so there’s a casual dialogue going on as a backdrop to their smooth technical skills. They act as each other’s audience, i.e. one is showing to the other how to do a specific task.
• The MCs tell a joke in the transition between the ‘sets’, and there’s a challenge instructions for participants: it’s the action points to test their skills which can potentially become lucrative (of course, they added a prize draw in the mix!).
• Graphic design of the presentations is enticing and uniform. It is easy to get hold of ideas because of clear structure. They are summarized and sometimes quickly explained by gifs.

I wouldn’t even be writing about this had I not participated in another conference, organized by the regional language teaching association. This was their first one, so having that in mind, it was a success. However, I cannot help but compare the two styles of presentations/workshops: the one just described above, and the one at the conference: using the same Power Point presentation they would show in a room, and screen-share it. Most of them are happy doing it because now they can just read off the screen while ‘facing the audience’ (facepalm🤦🏽‍♀️). Not all of them were like that, truth be told. Some teachers even used external interactive tools. Sometimes I think they used them just because they know about them, it was not as purposeful as it could have been, or maybe I’m just nitpicking. Let’s say: while we were doing the ‘interactive activity’ a thought dashed through my mind: why do we need to do this now? And another one followed: there is a simpler way of doing this.

Now, putting these two head to head, I know that my expectations are not too high, and I know that a good quality workshop does exist (I witnessed a lot of them in our Nearpod Winter Camp — which is why I am going to attend the Summer Camp, too!). I realize, however, that it’s not only about the tools the presenter is using (my personal choice is Nearpod), but the whole approach: the online workshop cannot be the same in style, pace, and delivery as the one in person. The ‘empty time’ of waiting for people to join in (at least first five minutes), and allowing them to jump from one tool to another, from one tab or window to another, needs to be accounted for, it needs to be planned and filled with content: a joke or funny gif, a story or reflection, or a short dialogue with a participant.

The biggest value added to the online workshop can be co-presenting. Just having this dynamic exchange makes a huge difference. If there are no two presenters of one workshop, the role of the listener can be assumed by the MC — the conference organizer who announces the presenter. Being actively involved as a listener, models this for other participants, makes them identify with the listener, they relate to him/her/them, but the presenter also gets some feedback on what is being presented. This setup is not needed in in-person workshops, because we can make eye contact and read the room, but on Zoom (Google Meet, Teams, etc.) the participants mostly have their cameras off (connectivity quality), they maybe eat, drink, or are not even at their computer. It is hard to tell if they are receptive, and up to which degree. Yes, they can type something in the chat or give you the reactions, but not all of them will. And this is why Nearpod will be my choice of an online presentation tool (this article is not sponsored, I promise!): you can see exactly who is doing what and at which pace.

I look forward to the Camp Engage Summer — a little bit for the networking, a little bit to learn about the new features, but mostly to witness excellent workshops and enjoy captivating presentation skills.