The assistant instructor is the perfect role for an instructor in training. He or she can participate as a student and assist the instructor at the same time. If there s a subject matter expert involved in the delivery, he or she can manage the assistant role and take some of the pressure off of the lead instructor by answering chat questions and providing lecture assistance. If you have a special guest instructor that doesn t know how to manage a synchronous classroom, the lead instructor can facilitate the discussion and manage the technology while the guest acts as the assistant and leads the discussion. Content Common to all synchronous applications, content windows are used by instructors to display content in HTML, PowerPoint, or other Web-ready media.
Some products limit the types of file formats that can be displayed via content windows.
Remember that synchronous classrooms are a very visual medium. What s shown in the content area needs to be relevant and engaging. Don t include slides that the instructor will read verbatim. If that s the nature of the content, consider an asynchronous or self-paced delivery method. Remember that every time you add a new technology, you are also adding a potential technical obstacle.