
Compiled by Paula White based on feedback from recent presentations on using Zoom by Judy Oakden to ANZEA members
Strengths of Zoom – what participants said
- Great for daily contacts, timely and efficient connections
- Connects people who are geographically spread and saves on travel and time
- I’m surprised at how connected I feel with my colleagues through using this. I thought it would be more difficult not being in person. Actually feel more connected with those not in my area than before.
- “I’ve carried out quite a few interviews with kaumatua and they were delighted. Worked well because their mokopuna helped them with set up.”
- “I have a strong preference for Zoom over Teams. So far, there seem to have been less issues.”
Limitations of Zoom – what participants said
- “Connecting with people when face to face is our (Māori) normal. Don’t get the same mauri, whanaungatanga.”
- Types of technology may pose challenges. Links are not always reliable, variable capability
- Over zooming – can be tiring and is not as natural a conversation.
- Managing with personal circumstances/whānau
101: Getting the basics right
- Biggest challenge is getting the technology working appropriately – like ensuring the link is working
- Be prepared with the meeting ID and password written down
- Know where the settings are
- Only one person talking at a time is good meeting etiquette – use your mute button!
- Master sharing your documents during meeting screen (e.g. PowerPoints) is very helpful – and note what this does to the other people’s view
- Check internet stability at guest end before deciding whether to add video or just sound
- Upload a virtual background to remove background distraction and add aesthetic appeal – if computer’s processor is fast enough
- Practice makes confident!
- Co-opt helpers to run the session, there is too much to do on your own if you have more than a few people.
Keeping info safe
- We had lots of discussions about security settings. How secure is it when someone calls you directly via Zoom – as opposed to via a Zoom link?
- Functionality of being able to prevent attendees from recording/scraping chat available on the free Zoom version?
- Security risks when not using a generated and link and just using the direct call function?
- We have been told that we should only use Zoom for conversations that we’d be happy having in a cafe.
Good ethical and cultural practice
- Transfer tikanga i.e. Karakia, mihimihi into the zoom ‘space/whare’ – people have found this is working well.
- Housekeeping!
- Importance of setting ground rules at beginning or etiquette e.g. disclosure of recording, muting mic’s unless speaking
- Importance of disclosure that the session is being recorded e.g. disconcerting to have people moving around a lot or eating, especially if it is a large group
- “We have some Zoom etiquette at the top of each meeting agenda as a standard.”
Keeping Zoom people-friendly
- Keep info succinct – short snippets are fine
- Slow it down to give others a chance to speak, especially if need to unmute
- Leave enough time between Zoom sessions, so not Zooming back to back, get zoomed out.
- Be aware of other attendees’ body language, other cues…
- When presenting, include ‘pause’ slides where there is a structured place to ask questions or provide comments.
- It may be more difficult to manage a meeting from home. So environment needs to be considered.
- Hear from everyone – break out rooms work well
- We have tried different hats to add some fun to a meeting
Zoom advanced features – Hot tips for more advanced users
- Managing large groups: How do you put people in break out rooms? (It is a function the call host has) Is that breakout function only for the facilitator? (Yes, the call host does this. Note: It is possible to share hosting rights with someone else)
- Using polling info and response buttons is a useful way to gauge reactions.
- “Do you suggest using two different screens while on zoom? I find it hard to have a split screen on one laptop i.e. listening while typing or reviewing documents.”
- Benefits of using 2 screens or devices – not having to switch the windows around when you want to see the whole doc or ppt. by splitting your screen.
- Cool tip to manage amount of info on screens during Zoom: Join zoom twice, use one for sharing screen, other for talking. So, participants on one screen, your docs on another.