Exposure to tech professionals increases student interest in tech and computing careers. Through Class Chats, we bring Amazon employees to classrooms, to deliver a virtual career talk and help students better understand what it’s like to work in the tech industry... and what it takes to get there! Class Chats are free, live, interactive, and available to everyone.
Class Chats are currently available for AFE partner schools in India. If you are a non-profit working with underprivileged young people or government school administrator or teacher, please fill up this form to get in touch and explore how can we partner.
How does a Class Chat Work?
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Step 1: Pairing and Planning (at least one month before)
1. AFE Partner Schools should provide the class chat request at least a month in advance of their desired Class Chat date.
2. Once the schools are paired with volunteers, both - school and volunteer - receives a confirmation email with the details of school and volunteer.
3. The schools send a calendar invite (or call) to the volunteer using school’s preferred video platform (zoom, google meet etc.) system. If the schools do not have a preferred platform, Amazon volunteers can offer Amazon chime.
2. Once the schools are paired with volunteers, both - school and volunteer - receives a confirmation email with the details of school and volunteer.
3. The schools send a calendar invite (or call) to the volunteer using school’s preferred video platform (zoom, google meet etc.) system. If the schools do not have a preferred platform, Amazon volunteers can offer Amazon chime.
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Set your students up for an awesome Class Chat experience with our Class Chat Teacher Toolkit. Inside you will find worksheets, slide decks, and pre/post activities to deepen student learning before and after the chat.
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Step 3: Class Chat (day of)
1. Teachers should complete Lesson 2 - Class Chat Day including up to 30 minutes conferencing with your volunteer. All volunteers will have 15 minutes of prepared content and will leave 15 minutes for questions.
2. Teachers should include time for student discussion at the end.
3. Teachers should collect all student worksheets.
4. Teachers are encouraged to moderate the class chats to get the most of both students and volunteers time.
2. Teachers should include time for student discussion at the end.
3. Teachers should collect all student worksheets.
4. Teachers are encouraged to moderate the class chats to get the most of both students and volunteers time.
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Step 4: Class Chat Feedback (day after)
The teacher provides class chat feedback using the channel provided by AFE class chat team. Use collected student worksheets to submit requested results.
FAQ
Am I eligible to sign up for a Class Chat?
Class Chats are only available to AFE partner schools in India right now. If you are a non-profit working with underprivileged young people or government school administrator or teacher, please fill up this form to get in touch and bring become a AFE Partner school. You can also write to us at classchats-in@amazon.com. To see a list of partners, please visit this page.
Will my employee volunteer be a computer science professional or could they have a non-tech role at Amazon?
In an effort to show students the wide variety of roles in tech, we have recruited a diverse range of employees to participate in Class Chats. Some volunteers may be a software development engineer while others may be more focused on marketing or program support. Computer science impacts all jobs here at Amazon, so we hope your volunteer can illuminate the vast array of opportunities that exist in the tech sector.
Students from which classes/grades/educational qualifications can participate?
Class Chats are available for grades 3 and above
I teach multiple sections. Can I request multiple Class Chats?
Yes! You can request a Class Chat for as many sections as you need. It’s possible that a volunteer may sign up to fulfill all your requests, or you may be paired with different volunteers for each one. But each class chat should be a separate request.
What conference platform do I need to use?
It’s up to you! You will be the owner of the conference link, so you can use any link your school prefers (google meet, Zoom). If you don’t have a conference system, your volunteer can set one up for you using Amazon Chime.
My friend works at Amazon. Can I request them as our Class Chat volunteer?
You can let your friend know. They will need to complete training and then can look for your request in our volunteer system. We cannot hold sections for specific requests at the moment.
I requested a Class Chat, but never heard back. What should I do?
Please reach out to us at classchats-in@amazon.com and let us know! This is a new program, so while we will try our best to fulfill all requests, its possible that something went wrong on our end. Please email us and we will try our best to fix the situation
Who can I contact for help?
Please reach out to classchats-in@amazon.com for any additional support.