Behind the Scenes
Take a peek at the operations and people that make TeachLive a unique experience!
Meet the Student Avatars
Savannah Boyd
Savannah has a strong mind for details and has excellent analytical ability. She tends to work best on solo projects with clear directions in a quiet environment and may struggle with content if she doesn’t see practical applications. Personally, she tends to be introverted and may struggle to connect socially with her classmates, but she is loyal and kind. Her favorite subject is P.E. and she loves playing volleyball. Her ability for recall makes her a favorite team member at trivia night. Savannah is also a very strong math student.
Dev Kapoor
Dev is a rule-follower, who is self-driven with high standards. He tends to love patterns and approaches learning with enthusiasm and an open-mind. In the classroom, he prefers solo projects and may struggle with a loud environment. Personally, Dev is usually relaxed and friendly, but can at times be unknowingly insensitive to other’s feelings. His favorite subject is math and he loves building models and doing brain teasers when not at school.
Ava Russo
Ava is quick-thinking and decisive and likes to be challenged with new ideas and concepts. She works well in a group, and understands better when shown how to do something. Ava can be impatient with others when she feels the pace is too slow and can struggle in a more rule-based, structured environment. Personally, Ava is extroverted and loves taking the lead but can at times be too sarcastic or insensitive to others. Her favorite subject is history and she loves anything related to dance.
Jasmine Walker
Jasmine is an intuitive learner who likes to look at big ideas and patterns and understand relationships. She tends to engage in topics based on her interest or passion level. Small group work is generally successful for Jasmine, but she may struggle with criticism or conflict. Personally, Jasmine is an empathetic introvert, who prefers the familiar. Her favorite subject is science and she is passionate about animal rights. Jasmine is also dyslexic and therefore struggles with her reading.
Ethan Mullen-Hardy
Ethan is an adventurous learner, willing to step out of his comfort zone and to understand new perspectives. He tends to respond best to short, direct instructions, with a mix of small group work and solo study, and may struggle with detail-oriented work. Personally, Ethan is an extrovert, who loves to make others’ laugh and approaches most anything with a high level of energy. His favorite subject is language arts and he loves playing soccer and video games in his spare time.
Meet the Parents and Guardians
It takes a village!
One of the most challenging aspects of teaching is communicating with parents and guardians, especially when dealing with sensitive or difficult issues. How do you break the news that their child has cheated on an assignment, been disrespectful in class, or violated the school's health policy? How do you balance praising their child's strengths and addressing their weaknesses, without triggering a defensive or hostile reaction? How do you handle parents who are too involved, too detached, or too busy to care about their child's education? These are some of the scenarios that you will face as a teacher, and you need to be prepared for them. TeachLive provides you with the opportunity to experience different types of parent-teacher conferences, where you will meet adult avatars who display common behaviors and attitudes that you may encounter in real life. Some of them may be supportive and cooperative, while others may be dismissive and intimidating. These situations will challenge you to use effective strategies to communicate your message, build rapport, and resolve conflicts.
Enhancing Education through Experiential Training
Simulation Specialists
Our Simulation Specialists curate the TeachLive experience and play a crucial role in ensuring smooth communication and technical operations within the virtual classroom. Our Simulation Specialists are also known as “interactors.” When selecting an interactor, several professional qualifications are taken into consideration. These qualifications include technological proficiency, effective communication skills, improvising in real time, and problem-solving abilities. Typically, our interactors are current graduate students at UM that received a Graduate Assistant (GA) position. To secure a GA position, students must undergo a thorough application process and interview. The virtual classroom interactors are then selected from the pool of qualified GAs.
UM provides comprehensive in-house training for new interactors. The extensive training typically takes fifty to sixty hours and covers various aspects, including scheduling sessions, and becoming proficient in the software utilized for running the virtual classroom. The simulation specialists use a headset, controller, and scenario scripts to manuever the avatars. New hires study the unique personalities and habits of each avatar, while also dedicating time to replicate their voices. In addition, interactors must familiarize themselves with different scenarios, such as parent-teacher conferences and content specific lesson plans.
