Using QR Codes During Distance Learning

Image by Gerd Altmann from Pixabay

QR (Quick Response) Codes have a great many uses in education, particularly during concerns over students sharing resources and contact due to COVID-19. QR Codes can be created online and if scanned with a device (like a phone) a resource will pop up. It can be a document or text, a website, a video, a direct link to a social media account, or even a Google Form. It makes for a simple way for students and staff to be directly guided to a resource.

My favorite easy tool for creating QR Codes is QR Stuff. You first put in the resource you want to be opened by the QR Code (you can upload your own files or use a link to the web), then click the download button and your QR Code will be saved as an image file. You put that image file on whatever document you are handing out and anyone with a device can then use it. Vocaroo is another great site where you can record audio and then create a QR Code. It's very simple to use and it would be fantastic to give verbal directions or even expand on instructions. 

For librarians, QR Codes have a myriad of uses from using to connect students to book lists or similar titles, creating contactless book checkouts, or even for resources for teachers and staff. Within my own classroom, I have used QR Codes during station activities. Stations allow students to move around the room, reviewing resources one station/location at a time. Typically this would involve a lot of prep work from teachers, from setting up laptops for videos or websites and making copies of physical handouts or documents. With QR Codes though students can still move around but then use the QR Codes to pull the resource up directly on their device. In a high school classroom, this is quite easy as most students have phones, and having them work in groups ensures that at least one group member has a device. 

With schools most likely facing some hybrid of in-person and distance learning this fall, QR Codes can offer not only a  safe way to access resources (no sharing documents!) but also allow students easy and direct access to resources, whether they are in school or at home.