Consider me your orientation leader while we are visiting Zoom University for the rest of the semester. This past week I have discovered some things that make Zoom University not as bad as I thought it would be. While the transition to online classes is still going to be a little rough for some, hopefully these tips and tricks can be of some help.
- Active Listening & Focusing
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If you have trouble focusing while seeing what everyone else is doing while in class like me, try selecting Active Speaker View when in Zoom. This will only allow you to see the speaker, being most likely your professor or whoever is asking a question. Another tip when it comes to focusing is to get out of your bed. I know your comfy bed is calling your name, but work at a desk or at a table. This will help you be more productive and more likely to listen and/or take notes during an online lecture.
- Voice Typing
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If you normally type your notes, you can try this. Under the Tools section on Google docs, there is a “Voice Typing” option. Once selected, a little microphone will pop up and when you click it, anything you say is typed. You can run the Voice Typing while your professor is lecturing and it will type everything they say out.
- Facetune on Zoom
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Now this is the real advice here. Zoom has a facetune option that basically airbrushes your face during class. When you are in a Zoom meeting, you can go to the bottom left hand corner of your screen and select the arrow next to Stop Video, select Video Settings and then Touch Up My Appearance –– your under eye circles during your 8 a.m.? Gone. It might not be much, but maybe you can still catch the eye of your classroom crush.
I know it is a little weird going from being on campus for your classes to being at home, but we will get through. Attend your lectures and keep studying –– being at home gives you the chance to slack off, but don’t. Use your extra time to get that 4.0 this semester. Zoom University will be closing in three short months. You got this!