Real truth here. I’ve done remote work with fully distributed teams since the days when Skype was new and impressive. The idea that anyone can/should flip on Zoom or an equivalent to “get everyone in the same room” and treat it like a day-long work session is extremely broken.
Apply that to kids and teens and it’s even moreso; extended video conferencing turns “being there” into a kind of enforced hypervigilance.
As somebody whose work often involves lots of workshopping, collaborative discussions, and brief spurts of didactic explanatory presentation… it’s been a top priority to iron out effective ways of handling this stuff when remote is the only option
Good approaches so far: “realtime video as punctuation, not the primary mode”; clear walkthroughs of mental models and techniques; group and individual homework exercises to be done during the day with clear expectations and timelines; group sharing and feedback re the results.
Now, I’m lucky in that I’m doing that stuff with adults who are highly motivated to get the most out of the interaction. No coercion necessary (usually). If it takes that much adjusting and careful planning under those circumstances, God help K-12 teachers.