Instructor Delivery: Quality Standards – Goobec

Instructor delivery is all about how you communicate in your course. When you come across as a credible and confident instructor, it has a huge positive impact on the learning experience for students, and can tilt the scales on whether students love the course or they don’t.

What You Need to Know

How to speak:

Edit out all uhms, pauses and verbal mistakes.
Demonstrate genuine excitement and enthusiasm for the topic.
Speak clearly and with a measured pace.
Practice and script out what you want to say.
Use “I” and “you” instead of “we”.

What to say:

Use visual tools to reinforce what you’re saying.
Avoid going off into tangents when explaining a concept.
Explain all jargon that you use.
Catch and explain potential misunderstandings (this demonstrates empathy for students).

Other recommendations:

Engage with students in the discussion forum by answering questions or starting new discussions and posing questions to your students
Opt for closed captioning

Remember, we do check for this as part of our Quality Review Process.

In this article, we will cover:

Best practices
Minimum requirements to pass our Quality Review Process
Examples of good and bad instructor delivery

Best Practices

How to Speak

Edit out all uhms, pauses, or verbal mistakes: Keep your videos clean and free of mistakes. Edit out any verbal miscues, long pauses, or other mistakes that might distract students. These can be small (“umms”, “ahhs”, slight sniffles) or they can be large (blowing your nose, dropping a prop, leaving the frame). This is one-time pain for long term gain, so don’t be afraid to do retakes when you’re recording!
Demonstrate genuine excitement and enthusiasm for the topic: Whether it’s your first time explaining something or your twentieth, students appreciate instructors who can convince them that a topic is truly interesting and worth diving into. Don’t be afraid to show your passion for the topic!
Speak clearly with a measured pace: By slowing down and enunciating your words with careful pronunciation, you will make it easy for students from around the world to understand you clearly.
Practice and script out what you want to say: There are very few people out there who can face a camera and just start talking. For the rest of us, we recommend scripting out what you want to say so you can stay confident and organized on camera. Rehearse the script once or twice before recording and you’ll do great!
Use “I” and “you” instead of “we”: Use language that refers directly to yourself, and to the student, rather than speaking generally. This small touch leads to a more personal experience for students and, in turn, higher student engagement.

What to Say

Use visual tools: Students appreciate when instructors zoom in or visually highlight the part of the screen that is most relevant to what the instructor is saying. In live-action videos, try superimposing key words, freeze framing, or using a telestrator to help focus students’ attention.
Avoid tangents: Avoid talking about related topics that aren’t immediately necessary or relevant to the topic of the lecture.
Explain all jargon: Whenever you introduce a term that may be new for students, define that term in the context of the concept you’re explaining.
Catch and explain potential misunderstandings: Think about the types of mistakes an average student would make and the concerns he/she would have, and address them whenever possible.

Other Recommendations

Answer questions in the discussion forums: Students report higher satisfaction with courses when instructors take time to answer their questions or spark conversation in the course discussion forum.
Opt for closed captioning: Some students really appreciate being able to read an instructor’s words while they’re being delivered. While this is totally optional, it is something to consider when making your content more globally accessible. Click here for more information on adding closed captions to your course.

Minimum Requirements to Pass our Quality Review Process

Cut out “umms” and “ahhs” and get straight to the point. Students want an instructor who is clear, concise, and confident.
Work to deliver your content with an enthusiastic tone. The camera strips out some enthusiasm so you’ll have to give 110% while filming your lectures.
Pronounce your words clearly and emphasize important points.