My presentation (20 minutes + 10 minutes Q&A) was a brief exploration of what worked and what did not work on a fully online, summer Pre-sessional course at the University of Sheffield, UK. Drawing on my experience of teaching private students online for several years and my role with the IATEFL Learning Technologies Special Interest Group, this is a first-hand account of being in the virtual classroom, teaching EAP classes remotely for the first time. Recording will be made available on the TEL SIG You Tube channel. https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCVz0VVaVKALUK24CM2A4oJQ

1. A Breakout Summer
First-hand Experience in using Breakout
Rooms Effectively on a Pre-sessional 2020.
Phil Longwell
BALEAP TEL SIG conference
3 October 2020

2. Breakout Rooms
or Escape room?
Image sources: https://www.historymystery.games/escape-game-castle-meadow
https://www.norwichvr.com/the-vr-escape-room

3. English Language
Teaching Centre
The University of
Sheffield
● 10 week Pre-sessional (PS) course
● Flipped Learning (Interactive Content)
● Blackboard ‘MOLE’ (VLE) and Blackboard
Collaborate
● Fully online with students accessing content and
live sessions from home
● TEL team and TECH team working from home
● Taught from my (bed)room in Endcliffe Village.

4. Lesson Material
Interactive Content
Google Slides (pdfs)
● Interactive Content - Articulate Rise
● Grade Centre in Blackboard
● All lesson materials created in Google
Slides, converted to .pdfs uploaded to
Collaborate
● Breakout Group Slides x 2 (based on
classes)
● Partner teaching (25 students in total)

5. Lesson Material
Interactive Content
Google Slides (pdfs)
● Interactive Content - Articulate Rise
● Grade Centre in Blackboard
● All lesson materials created in Google
Slides, converted to .pdfs uploaded to
Collaborate
● Breakout Group Slides x 2 (based on
classes)
● Partner teaching (25 students in total)

6. Breakout Rooms
Principles of using them:
● Group work
● Collaboration
● Theories of learning
constructivism / connectivism
● Task-based Learning
● Production (Higher Order Thinking Skills)
● Inclusion of all students
Different platforms vary in their functionalities.
Most virtual classroom tools have a breakout
room option, but differ in the way they work
and what can be done using them.

7. Breakout Rooms :
Collaborate
● Collaborate has advantages over Zoom in its ability to
share slides (.pdfs, images) directly.
● Google Slides converted to .pdfs work well -
sometimes a lot are required, but can be like
‘stop-start animation’ as slides might vary slightly.
● Custom assignment / Random assignment
● Choose an appropriate number of groups depending
on student numbers or task or skill.
● Options to manually move students or for them to
move themselves, which is recommended.

8. Breakout Rooms :
EAP / Pre-sessional
● Colour coded groupings
● Single, tailored Image slides
● Clear instructions / reminders
● Options for students to move
● Different groupings for
different skills, tasks

9. Breakout Rooms :
EAP / Pre-sessional

11. Breakout Rooms :
EAP - what did not work
● Connectivity. Starting/moving into breakout
rooms - slows Collaborate down.
● Breakout sessions without clear
instructions.
● Learners who did not do the interactive
content beforehand.
● Students unwilling to speak.
● Glitches in slide sharing. ‘Random’ groups.
Fun but unreliable. Slides missing in
Collaborate. Better in Zoom!
Despite some ‘teething problems’, having
patience helped and even the adapted materials
included a reflective element (self study).

12. Breakout Rooms : Tips
what did work
● Make sure you have the main and breakout slides
uploaded to Collaborate. Add Files to main room
then share to groups.
● Pre-assign Breakout Group & share slide(s) before the
lesson begins.
● Give clear instructions - what should students do and
how long do they have.
● Have a separate set of breakout slides, but vary these
if needed. Collaborate more flexible than Zoom.
● Make sure everybody knows what group they should
be in and give a warning before starting (if not
already pre-assigned).

13. Breakout Rooms : Tips
● For difficult tasks, show the breakout slide(s) in the
main room and check understanding before asking
students to move to the correct room.
● Keep the same groups throughout the course for one
skill (e.g. writing) but have a second set of groupings
for other lessons (e.g. speaking/seminars)
● Encourage students to turn on mics (cameras if
appropriate). Assessment!
● Warn students when Breakout groups are going to
end. Countdown!
● Make slides visual - consider different tasks or options
for each room. Differentiation!
Image credit: Esther Park @MrsParkShine

14. Breakout Rooms : Tips
● Audio - use headphones or earphones / feedback
and background noise
● Vary the number of breakout rooms and be flexible
if something isn’t working.
● Make use of the Group chat as well as the
‘everyone’ chat. Know the difference, too!
● Unobtrusive monitoring and the Panopticon
principle!
● Think about numbers - what is the most effective -
‘Bystander Theory’ !
Image credit: Adam Simpson in Shone (2013)

15. Conclusions
● Collaborate is excellent for file sharing and the
management of documents within the platform.
● It has advantages over Zoom in this one main
respect. Zoom has advantages over screen
sharing, a more user-friendly interface and
annotation and whiteboard options.
● Effective management of breakout rooms
(groups) is dependent on a number of factors
highlighted, but ultimately they are essential at
EAP level in order for inclusion, engagement and
production. Higher-order thinking skills.

16. Conclusions
● Collaborate is excellent for file sharing and the
management of documents within the platform.
● It has advantages over Zoom in this one main
respect. Zoom has advantages over screen
sharing, a more user-friendly interface and
annotation and whiteboard options.
● Effective management of breakout rooms
(groups) is dependent on a number of factors
highlighted, but ultimately they are essential at
EAP level in order for inclusion, engagement and
production.
● Note: MS Teams is rolling out virtual breakout
rooms very soon (Q4): https://bit.ly/3coddO0

17. References:
Longwell, P. (2020). Getting Students to Collaborate in Breakout Rooms in Remote Teaching. An
LTSIG workshop delivered on 29 August 2020. Recording available here:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0o3l0u6Qpok
Longwell, P. (2020). My EAP Summer in Sheffield: A Reflection. Available at:
https://teacherphili.com/2020/09/05/my-eap-summer-in-sheffield-a-reflection/
Read, D. (2020). Collaborate Breakout Groups. A training session given to ELTC teaching staff, PS10
on 25 June 2020. Slides accessed here: https://bit.ly/31kIsWs Recording not publicly available.
Shone, T. (2013). Surveillance State. A review of ‘The Panopticon’ by Jenni Fagan. Available at:
https://www.nytimes.com/2013/07/21/books/review/the-panopticon-by-jenni-fagan.html
Accessed 11 September 2020.

18. Q & A