A good kick-off: Right from the start!
If you hope that during your course your students will exchange information, feedback, learning materials, etc, then it is important that they can get to know each other.
How?
With a ‘live’ kick off moment
- participants can meet each other ‘face to face’
- participants can get to know each other during the break or expand their networks
- you are able to let the participants are enabled towork together, to form groups, or to find ‘buddies’
- you can create a ‘boost’ with an activity, a speaker, a lecture, etc.
- you can tackle technical difficulties by performing together
- ….
Starting online
If the entire trajectory – including ‘getting acquainted’ – happens online
- Create a ‘safe’ online environment, for example by creating a closed group in LinkedIn, by communicating through LCMS, …
- You can initiate acquaintance among students by an approachable task, for example by positing a blog where they introduce themselves
- You can organise an online meeting where everyone can introduce themselves
- You can ask them to fill in an information form, and address participants in groups to point out there mutual hobbies, background, etc.
- …
