Best Online Teaching Software for Teachers

What is Online Teaching Software?

Online teaching software is a tool that offers students and teachers a substitute for in-person learning. Essentially, it helps bring the classroom to your device. Consider the analogy of how Netflix brought movies from the cinema halls to your home. Online teaching software is equivalent to bringing your education home with real-time interactions with teachers and peers.

An online teaching software acts as a platform where students can not only attend interactive classes but also view and submit assignments, brainstorm, collaborate with peers, etc.

What are The Benefits of Online Teaching Software?

Besides uninterrupted learning in this unprecedented pandemic, online teaching software has many benefits. The following are some of the key-value additions of using online teaching software:

1. Convenience

Arguably the best thing online teaching offers us is convenience and flexibility. Students and teachers can now attend classes from the comfort of their homes. The students and teachers need a working system and a stable Wi-Fi connection. This also saves a lot of time and logistics costs which are otherwise spent on traveling to and from the educational institution.

Having classes done through the online teaching software also offers flexibility with these classes' timing. Classes can now be scheduled at times outside of traditional school hours. Also, teachers could pre-record courses that don’t require active interactions for students to revisit at a time suitable. Having classes spread across a larger time frame offers more options to students and teachers and can help improve their efficiency.

2. Access to quality tutors

There are times when students are deprived of good quality education due to a scarcity of teaching talent available in the locality. Online teaching software removes the location barrier and enables access to teachers from much larger geography to help students thrive. This can be particularly helpful for institutions based in cities/countries where quality teaching staff is not readily available.

This is also beneficial for the teaching staff in any institution as it gives them exposure to diverse teaching experiences. Teachers can interact with students from different disciplines, backgrounds, and cultures, an opportunity they may not have without online teaching tools.

3. Improved student-teacher interactions

In the traditional classroom setup, a student’s access to his or her teacher is limited to the confines of the classroom within the scheduled time. Online teaching software enables students to be connected with teachers without needing to be physically present. This also enables students to interact with teachers without being physically present. 

Further, through online teaching software, students can access the teacher’s availability and schedule meetings at a time that suits them both.

4. Staying connected with parents

The benefits of the software can be extended to the parents as well. Busy parents often find it challenging to make time to attend parent-teacher meetings while juggling a full-time job. Online teaching software means parents can access the teachers from the comfort of their homes over a much broader timeframe. This ensures that a critical feedback loop is complete to address a child’s areas for improvement.

Another benefit for parents is that E-learning offers greater transparency regarding how their children prepare for school. Overall, it contributes to better communication between teachers and parents.

5. Improved digital literacy

As for the bigger picture, the most crucial benefit is using technology to enhance society's digital literacy. To stay relevant, students must adopt and adapt to new technology in their everyday lives. This also provides a chance for educational institutions to upgrade their teachings to offer the best to their students in this fast-changing digital world.

What are The Features of Online Teaching Software?

So far, we’ve looked at why we need good Online teaching software. Now, let us look at what a typical Online teaching software would look like. The following are some key features that one should look out for a while choosing online tutoring software:

1. Robust video conferencing

An online teaching system must have the essential capability of video conferencing platforms. The feature to display multiple video feeds of the students and the teachers simultaneously helps replicate some elements of in-class learning.

2. Interactive tools

A key feature of having seamless interactive learning is to provide tools that keep students and teachers engaged. For example, having whiteboarding tools ensures that students and teachers can interact virtually as they would in person. Some software also provides creation breakout rooms should students need to work on group activities.

3. Live quizzes and grading

If classes can be held online, then so can examinations. Online teaching software provides live quizzes, which can be taken remotely by the students. The teachers can then grade these quizzes through the same software and maintain reports of student scores. Thus, the online tutoring software also enables performance tracking of the students.

4. Class recording and playback

Finally, the software also allows for recording class sessions, which students can view later at their convenience.

Things to Consider While Purchasing an Online Teaching Software

The features above help us understand what to expect from Online teaching software. The following are key considerations that a user should take into account to make the most of the software before investing in a new solution:

• Easy to use for teachers, students, and parents alike
• A robust visual representation enhanced by multiple windows
• Accessible across an extensive range of devices to cater to all students
• Multi-user access for interactive collaboration tools (ex: whiteboarding)
• Ability to accommodate a large user group
• Stable performance even at low to moderate internet speeds
• Secure platform to ensure the privacy of the content

Final Take on Online Teaching Software

The new normal has quickened our adoption of online teaching software in educational institutions. These tools are particularly beneficial to students not limited by geography in their pursuit of good quality education.

Online teaching tools are essential to teachers who can share material remotely, monitor students, and conduct and grade examination papers. Teachers can also use added tools to their advantage, such as a whiteboard or projecting their screens, as they would in a classroom setting.

The adoption of online teaching software is a critical step in educating our leaders of tomorrow on how we can use technology to enhance our learning experience. This will drive our society’s digital literacy and help us adapt and thrive in a rapidly evolving world.