To maintain some distance during COVID protocols, you may find you need to modify your classroom practices. Here are some ideas for interactive, physically-distanced learning with lower- and higher-tech alternatives (also see our tips on teaching with a mask on). As always, we encourage you to reach out to the SSU Instructional Design team with questions about adapting lesson plans or activities.

Low/No Tech:

Have students share in socially-distanced pairs or threes, perhaps sending some partners outside the class to talk if it gets too loud.
Do no-tech polling: give students paper in 3-4 colors, and have them hold up the paper that corresponds to an answer on a poll or survey.
Share "incomplete notes" in an LMS. Student can download and/or print, and fill in gaps in the notes during a lecture.
Perhaps most important if worried about compromised hearing, check for understanding! Have students write about the "muddiest point" at the end of class, complete an "exit ticket" with sticky notes, index cards, a Canvas Quiz or a Google form. One SSU instructor simply has students anonymously assess their post-class understanding as red, yellow or green with a zero-points quiz in Canvas (red = don't get it, yellow = unsure, green = feel confident).

Medium tech: relying on a cell phone

Salem State has a subscription to the digital tool Poll Everywhere, which allows students to respond via text or a web address. Students can respond to polls, multiple choice questions, surveys, open-response options, and word cloud prompts via text message (or computer); a backchannel can also be created. Contact the Instructional Design Team to learn more about accessing Poll Everywhere.
Use another app. The Canvas Student app may be a good choice; it allows students to post to discussions, access links, or complete a quiz from a smartphone. Alternatively, a messaging platform like Slack or Discord could allow open-ended responses or a class "backchannel" .

Higher tech: relying on some/most students to have laptops or tablets. Because we know that access is unequal and tech fails, it's a good idea to have a backup plan for this option - maybe students could use a smartphone app, or students that have devices could be in charge of populating a shared document. See "Further Resources" below for activity ideas on activities that lean on laptops or tablets.

Google and other collaborative tools - have students participate by adding to Padlets, Google docs, Google Slides, Jamboards or even Google Sheets.
Poll Everywhere and apps like Slack or What'sApp can be used even more easily on laptops and tablets.

No matter what strategy you use, leaning on Canvas for out-of-class communications is a smart move. Weekly announcements, posted assignments and resources, and a space for questions and answers can all help alleviate in-class communication snafus.

Further resources

Teaching in a Physically Distanced Classroom- Kristi Verbeke, Wake Forest University Center for the Advancement of Teaching
Active Learning While Physically Distancing- Collaborative idea-library document initiated by staff at Louisiana State University
Active Learning in Hybrid and Socially Distanced Classrooms - Derek Bruff, Vanderbilt University Center for Teaching
Backchannel in Education – Nine Uses - Derek Bruff, Vanderbilt University Center for Teaching
Digital Exit Tickets - Breana Bayraktar, Tips for Teaching Professors