Replies

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  Mike Collins June 21, 2018 at 11:25am

  Not necessarily a tip but one thing I'd do is where possible practice the moving people and moving inbetween breakout rooms - I'd also practice sharing white boards if they are using them as its something I've not quite refined yet in terms of moving pods and white boards around slickly 
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    Jo Cook > Mike Collins June 22, 2018 at 5:45pm

    Hi Mike, spot on, couldn't agree more. It's make the difference not only of will it work or not, but how confident the facilitator is too. Great advice!
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  Paul Norrington June 21, 2018 at 3:24pm

  Hi Stella.

  Sounds like a great move, and reckon you've got the best tool there for breakouts. A few thoughts:

  • if you are after full-on group work with everyone involved I'd suggest max 5-6
  • if there are several different topics for the breakout sessions,  consider letting them choose which ones they join (if numbers are not too big to manage). I'm a big believer in letting learners go where their energy is. A bit more work to configure the rooms (capture their choices via a poll etc).  A benefit of Connect is that you can configure all breakouts differently, if needed.
  • Regarding activities, I find scenarios work well.  Here's a tricky situation...if you were hired as a change consultant what would you suggest?  Or getting people to map where they are on the change curve (e.g. annotate on slides) for any particular change and discuss how they feel and why.
  • stella collins > Paul Norrington June 21, 2018 at 4:47pm

    thanks both of you - that's really helfpul.  i'm still working out where i'm going to use them in the virtual classroom but i'm excited by the concept  because it feels more normal.  and definitely like giving users choices Paul - though i can see it's possible a bit more work to set up.
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  Jo Cook June 22, 2018 at 5:51pm

  Hi Stella, this YouTube clip has about creating Adobe Connect breakouts, so might be a good one to watch: https://youtu.be/3aZIS6yIEUo
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  Karen Hyder July 2, 2018 at 3:07pm

  Adobe Connect breakouts require extra handholding. I have the facilitator talk about the assignment/activity and objectives, then turn it over to me for tech instructions. I talk about using mics and webcams, assigning a note taker to type in the Note pod--i'll pull their Note pods back into the Main room for debriefing. I also set up breakout rooms so there is a Breakout Group Chat to communicate with each other is case mic doesn't work, and Tech Chat or Main Chat so we can still Chat among everyone, when needed.  Oh, and before I send them to breakouts, I have them show Green Check. No check?  I'll assume you they not ready and hold off assigning them to a room.  When using a captioner and recoring, I keep one group in the Main room (and I warm then they are being recorded) and give them Enhanced rights to pods.
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  Lorna Matty July 2, 2018 at 10:47pm

  OMG – where do I start with this one. Love breakout rooms.  Love the suggestions given so far.  Here are my thoughts based on my experience to date working with participants operating across 20 countries where 9a) English is not their first language and (b) we use a facilitator and a host and (c) the sessions are a strict 90 minutes

   

  1. We have kept the groups to a maximum of three as the conversations can take longer and larger groups may not allow everyone the opportunity to engage
  2. Don’t forget to take them out of “listen only” mode before putting them into breakouts. We have to use teleconference rather than VOIP (don’t ask) and I can’t tell you the number of times I have started the breakouts only to realise I haven’t turned on their mics
  3. You can’t use breakouts if you use universal voice i.e. a mixture of VOIP and teleconference. It has to be one or the other
  4. After you break them into their groups, immediately circulate to ensure they are in the room they are meant to be in and they are clear what they need to do etc . For this it is useful to have a host help with this.
  5. Allow time for them to introduce themselves. When doing point 4, I find they always spend the first minute or so finding out a bit a bit each other despite any icebreakers you do at the start.    
  6. I don’t use the whiteboards. We are often pressed for time and they can spend more time working out how to use the tool rather than undertaking the task. So my preference is to have a slide with the exercise instructions on it and then ask them to capture their answers in a notepod. Of course, if time alows, the witeboard is great
  7. For the notepod, put space at the top for them to add their names. If say you want them to answer three questions, have the three questions written in the notepod so they simply put their answers under each one
  8. Create a layout for their responses so that when you bring them back to the mainroom you can quickly display their work rather than having to locate and retrieve one by one. If you prefer to do this, ensure you label the notepod, whiteboard or whatever you are using to make it easy to find
  9. Broadcast messages to give them a time check. I tend to have these messages prepared in a word document and simply copy and paste
  10. While I agree with Paul Norrington about giving them choice, that is not always possible. Before the start I tend to determine the breakout groups and once the session starts, I create the necessary breakouts. As a result I try not to have  a breakout too close to the beginning to give me time to set this up
  11. If two people are from the same location/country, consider putting them together for the breakout. We have done this because as I said English is often not the first language for those attending and they obviously find it easier to speak in their mother tongue. When we have say several  Russians on the same session, they love being paired and will often join each other in the same room to complete the exercise/do the role play. Of course I have no idea what they are saying when I drop into the session, but seem to be having a fab time and the output is always rich
  12. If possible run taster sessions in advance and get them to experience breakouts in a fun way. e.g a quiz

   

  Think that’s it for now… Hope that helps.. Lorna
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  Jo Cook August 15, 2018 at 7:00pm

  I found this fairly detailed support article from Adobe today on their breakout rooms: https://helpx.adobe.com/adobe-connect/using/breakout-rooms.html

  

  Breakout rooms in Adobe Connect meetings

  Create and manage Breakout rooms in Adobe Connect meetings. Manage meeting audio, meeting video, and layout in Breakout rooms.