Three Low-Tech Active Student Responding Strategies for Inclusive Online Teaching

This article discusses how three low-tech instructional strategies, typically used in face-to-face teaching, can be successfully used in synchronous and asynchronous online instruction with students with high-incidence disabilities and their typical-learning peers in inclusive online classes. The three strategies are choral responding, response cards, and guided notes. Each strategy has been researched extensively and has been shown to result in high levels of active student responding, which improves students’ learning with and without disabilities across various academic subjects and grade levels. With high-tech tools, such as video conferencing platforms and learning management systems, educators can successfully use these strategies during online teaching. This article describes each strategy, presents research on its effectiveness, and suggests potential adaptations when used during inclusive online instruction, including students with high-incidence disabilities and those at-risk.