Create an easy-to-use online classroom on Viber

Students and teachers in Myanmar are trying to reinvigorate their education path in the most possible ways with the use of advanced communication technologies. Internet-based learning programs through mobile phones have become vital in the country. Educational institutes are exploring new tech-enabled platforms in order to conduct online classes and exams. In Myanmar, students and teachers are considering a combination of Videoconferencing tools and messaging apps which are safe, user-friendly, easy to access, and supportive of doing all kind of learning activities. Here in this article, a few important points that students and teachers need to consider before taking online classes are discussed to help them select a safe and effective learning platform.

1. How to select the best app for your teaching & learning activities

The very basic thing you should know when taking online classes is to get familiar with your app well, especially in terms of its functions. The current trend suggests that students and teachers need features such as group video call, share screen capability, interactive community participation, notes and reminders facility, sharing large files, and the like. With these requirements, Viber becomes one of the most suitable messaging apps for all-kind of learning activities. One of the many teachers who actively uses Viber for teaching says that the app has enabled him to create effective lesson plans for online teaching and share learning materials in various formats. Photo Source thantsettun@mangomyanmargroup.com

2. How to make your conversations secure

Using messaging apps also introduces important questions about security, data protection, and privacy.  Students need to pay importance on  how to keep themselves safe while staying connected with their teachers and classmates as they are more online now than ever. Thus, it’s imperative to know the privacy and security features that messaging apps offer which they can trust and appropriately use. So, never forget to choose the app which offers you default end-to-end encryption like Viber. The app never listens to your calls and messages and doesn’t share third-party data.

3. How to manage your activities in the group conversation

Apart from the know-how, you would also need to know to what extent you can manage your activities in the app to have smooth and effective communication while trying to learn through online platforms. In particular, files of up to 200MB can be shared in Viber, group video call is available for up to 40 persons, audio message on Viber can be up to 15 mins, while a video message on Viber can be up to 20 secs.

Depending on the requirements of teachers and students, they can open a Viber group chat for more focused group discussions, or create a Channel for one-way communication with thousands of participants across the borders. Sharing their thoughts on the new online learning system, Daw Thet Nwe , teacher of class Grade 2 at Best Guide said, “ I teach all subjects to class Grade 2 to about 10 students per session. I am amazed to see the things I can include in my teaching method such as using graphics, online videos, organizing quizzes and polls, audio messages, and giving my attention to each student. Technology has really helped me grow and am glad to still continue to teach despite the challenges.” Photo Source thantsettun@mangomyanmargroup.com

Messaging apps like Viber are at the forefront of enabling students to continue their education in Myanmar. The app allows users to have group chats where every chat is encrypted with default end-to-end encryption. The participants can have a group audio or video call, share files, create polls, and voice messages, and share links to educational materials. In addition, Viber allows organizations to create Channels where they can invite students and teachers based on the subjects they want to learn. Viber Channels can be joined by unlimited students only by invitation, thus giving more power to the teachers to add or delete participants. It also has a comments feature to allow engagement without possibly flooding the channel. Overall, channels provide enhanced privacy for a huge group of participants, content sharing, and more extensive admin controls that can be utilized by teachers.

Recently, a group of teachers formed a Viber Channel called  “Best Guide” to educate students from KG to grade 11.  The channel now has 320K members and is gradually becoming popular among students and teachers. Speaking on the importance of collaboration with Viber, Tom Known, Founder, Best Guides, said, “To get an equal opportunity in this rapidly changing world, it needs to start with education. Thanks to the advancements of technology and apps like Viber, students from different parts of the country can gain knowledge and define their own success.”

4. How to create a better atmosphere with classmates in virtual communication

Learning online doesn’t have to feel like you are completely far away from your classmates. There are several ways to communicate with your friends in a fancier way to make you feel that you all are together. Viber supports several fun features such as Reactions, Polls, Quizzes, Stickers, and GIFs. In addition, Rakuten Viber has recently launched Viber Lens. This could be an interesting way of expressing your emotions with your classmates and teachers to make online learning a fun activity. With the use of these features, students and teachers can interact and build a special bond with their peers over fun-loving conversations. A student sharing his experience on virtual learning says that he prefers online learning over the traditional way as he is able to learn more from visually rich learning material supported by videos, images, presentations and quizzes.

Resonating a similar experience, MyanLearn – a Viber channel for teaching English has gained immense popularity among students and teachers. With more than 163K members, MyanLearn is using most of the Viber features such as polls, quizzes, images, audio messages to provide quality learning experience to them.

5. How to manage your time for learning schedules

There is one feature that Viber specifically designed for the user to be able to manage their day-to-day tasks, which is called my notes. “My Notes” is a dedicated space in the user’s chat list that keeps to-do-lists, photos, reminders and such. Students can use that feature while taking notes during lectures, organizing their thoughts or making a check-list for the tasks they need to complete. After setting it all up, students can also set “Reminders” to these notes by long-pressing a message from your notes so that you won’t miss a thing that is important to you. This is one of the very useful features for the online learners who are now attending many online classes and want to keep a track of their day-to-day time-table.

Online learning platforms like Viber can help our next generation in achieving their goals and shape up their life the way they want it. Viber strongly believes that technology led solutions in the field of education can bring positive changes in the society we live in which in return will create a better nation.