Why online office hours suck
and what to do about it
The prof sits in her appointed office chair, laptop open (but camera off for now), in Zoom. She watches the participants list for an hour, eats her lunch, files that sharp fingernail, scrolls through Facebook, clicks on a link about nudging the asteroid, then logs off with a sigh when the hour is over.
Online office hours are often poorly attended, and there are many reasons for this. At the physical office, an open door, other students hanging around drinking coffee — these can signal to other students to stop by. Even continuing the classroom conversation while walking back to the office can encourage students to sit and chat.
In Zoom, though, the student has to know that the office hour is there, want to come more than they want to do something else, log in somewhere, decide whether they should be on camera, determine what the reaction might be if they don’t want to be on camera, and wonder how long it will take.
Will their question be stupid? Will anyone else be in the room or will they be stuck alone with the prof, put on the spot? Yes, these are concerns with physical office hours, but as with everything else they are amplified online.
It’s often said that the main reason that online office hours are poorly attended is that students don’t know they’re happening…
