With the introduction of online school came Zoom, and with Zoom came breakout rooms. While the intention of breakout rooms might be good as it gives students a chance to work on projects together and talk with each other, the reality is that most students don’t actually use them.
When teachers put students in groups in normal in-person classrooms, students would usually use the time to talk and work together— partly because the teacher was watching them, but also because it would be boring and awkward if they didn’t. However, online, it’s actually more awkward when people talk. Because most people don’t have their cameras or mics turned on in breakout rooms, you can’t see anyone’s face and can’t tell what the people on the other end are thinking. It doesn’t help even if you do decide to turn on your camera, because people still won’t feel the need to talk. With no teacher watching, and a phone and laptop nearby, the chances of feeling bored are very low.
However, not all students spend the breakout rooms on their phone. Many use the time to actually do the work, but do it by themselves, without the help of others in the group. Even the teachers are aware of this as they always ask if anyone actually worked on the assignment together whenever breakout rooms end, expecting the answer to be no. Without even the teachers believing in the usefulness of breakout rooms, are they even necessary to have in online school? The answer is no.
However, there are ways to make breakout rooms work. Giving students the option to work in a breakout room or not will make sure that the students working in the rooms are ones that want to be there and work better by communicating with others. This way, students who prefer to do the work by themselves and would feel awkward sitting in a breakout room with others can do exactly that.
Two Walter Johnson High School seniors who wish to remain anonymous were asked their opinions on the efficiency of breakout rooms, and if they could think of any ways to improve them. The first student responded that, “Generally, break out rooms don’t work that well because people don’t talk to each other…I think it’s just a lot about people not wanting to be social, if you have a group where people are talking to each other which I have, then that works great, but for some classes, especially when you stick people in groups with people that they don’t know, people are just not going to interact with each other.”
The second student interviewed had a similar opinion, and even added that, “Breakout rooms are useful when people make an attempt to actually speak and communicate with their classmates. When they don’t it’s just wasting everyone’s time…Maybe having teachers pop in to check if people are talking will help people speak more.” Students’ opinions start to differ when it comes to how to improve breakout rooms, as some believe it’s better to make breakout rooms optional, while others believe that teachers should check in on students to help them to speak up. However, in general, most students agree that breakout rooms don’t work the way they are now.
It’s not that breakout rooms are harmful or negative in any way. They just don’t add anything or make it easier to learn. In the end, most students will just ask their friends to help with the school work either way. Instead of putting students in breakout rooms, teachers should just let them work on it in the main classroom or give the option of going into a breakout room if a student wants it. This way, students would still be given a chance to work with others and time wouldn’t be wasted setting up breakout rooms for students who aren’t going to use them anyway.
Article by Esther Markov of Walter Johnson High School
Graphic by Naomi Fox of Walter Johnson High School