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How To Make The Most of Your Online Course

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Busy studying

So you just enrolled in one of our online course – for the first time.

You are excited and can’t wait to begin.

But you are feeling a bit unsure. Is there a protocol to follow? Do you need be aware of certain things before you begin?

While you have attended a traditional classroom setting, and most of us have, you have never studied in a virtual environment. You worry about what to expect and whether you have chosen the right medium to study in the first place.

Well – there are few things that you can do which will prepare you for your course and give you a bit of head start.

Let’s begin, shall we?

Go through the Orientation Guide first

Seems like kinda obvious, doesn’t it?

You would be surprised to know how many people receive their starter guides and then promptly forget about them. They keep them in a safe place and then don’t even open them once. (I have been guilty of that myself)

This is an obvious mistake. You want to orient yourself to the program. You want to find out exactly how it works and what the expectations are.

You will find all the important dates, which you should mark on the calendar, information about assignments and exams. If you need to participate in live chats, you need to mark that information, as well. (More about that later)

Get used to reading a lot

On the web, lectures take the form of – reading assignment. Instead of lecturing in front of your virtual room live, all the notes come to you in the form of more reading material. (But this is why you probably signed up for an online class – for the flexibility and not having to attend lectures in person, at a fixed time).

This does, however, mean that you have lot and lot of reading to do – much more than what is required in a traditional classroom.

Your teacher would also post readings on the web and post URLs for you to follow.

You could print out or read on your screen – in both cases you do have to read a lot. It is a good idea to get into the habit if you haven’t been in touch for a while. Also, try and improve your reading speed, it will come in much handy, trust me.

To improve without sacrificing comprehension learn to apply basic speed reading techniques, listen to classical music and take notes to optimize your time.

Take full advantage of Tech Helpdesk

Talking on the phone

How good are your computer skills? Would you label yourself a beginner, an expert or something in between?

Taking a virtual course does require basic word processing and web usage skills. The good news is you probably already know all the basics.

And do not worry if you are not exactly a computer guru. Most online education providers offer full technical support. So if you hit a wall with your online degree program, you are not the only one. Go ahead and call them if you need to.

Also, to help you get comfortable from the beginning, most online degree programs will offer an orientation to online classes to help you get familiar with the procedures. Don’t miss this.

Make use of their library resources

You have signed up for a course that will help you build you skills. It would be a pity if you choose to do ‘selective study’ and skip over the information.

The best thing is to go through the material once – make yourself familiar with it. And then return to it and go through it with more focus and deliberation. Make notes of all the additional resources you need.

You will be provided with all the study materials and you will have access to their library. Don’t forget to take full advantage of it. They have hundreds and thousands of high quality resources waiting to be checked out.

You will be provided with all the study materials and you will have access to their library. Don’t forget to take full advantage of it. They have hundreds and thousands of high quality resources waiting to be checked out.

Sometimes you can even use their on-site library. Enquire if they have a service for the distance education students where they post the books to you at no cost.

Participate in the forum

Most likely, you will have a web- based learning platform (blackboard), discussion boards and chat room that allows you to communicate with your teachers and fellow students. This really takes the learning experience to the next level.

If that’s the case, make sure you log in regularly. Vast majority of the students don’t participate in the forums which is such a shame. Ask any successful student, and they’ll mention the role forums played in their ability to get the most from the course.

Don’t be a wall flower. The best thing about the forum is that you have time to really think through your responses and the questions you want to ask. You don’t have to worry about sounding stupid.

Think beforehand and ask questions with confidence.

Some courses do include live chats to bring the entire class together. This only happens at special pre-allocated times. Most understand that most people study online to avail the benefit of the freedom and flexibility so “discussion” is conducted via e-mail or a Website forum that takes the form of a thread and not live chats.

Ask for Individual feedback

When you study online, you are allocated a tutor (monthly intakes) or faulty members for the semester. Don’t forget to know your teachers a bit more personally, like you would do in a normal classroom.

You can email them separately if you have private queries. For instance, if you are not happy with the feedback you have received, or your grades are not as good you have hoped, you can ask via email, rather than in the group forum.

If you question will help other students, your teacher instructor might ask your if it is ok to share the question and answer in the public discussion. That’s entirely up to you.

Hone your writing skills

Journal

Think your writing skills are important in the real classroom? They are even more so in their online counterpart.

In a real classroom, you are not graded on written assignments only, you are also judged on your presentations and how well you do in exams. Written reports only make a percentage of that. Online, this is simply not the case.

Just like intense demands on reading, writing presents the same. And this writing is academic so there are rules to be followed. You will be provided with accepted style guides to help you. Follow that and practice. This will significantly improve your grades and overall performance.

Additionally, you will get homework, which you should be able to submit to your instructor by email or in the post. Teachers will post homework assignments on the course Website. Some courses do ask students to form groups and to post or share their homework assignments for the rest of the class to critique ane leave comments on. Hence you need to be active in the forums to elicit positive responses from others.

Manage your time effectively

The good news is online programs are designed with busy, working or mature age students in mind who take a break to enhance their skills. The course is arranged so even if you are really flat out, you are not under tons of pressure to complete unnecessary tasks. The pace of the course is set so it fits neatly into your lifestyle, no matter how hectic that may be.

That being said, you still need to be highly self disciplined and set yourself a regular schedule. It doesn’t mean that you have to study a number of hours everyday, but you do need to allocate some time otherwise nothing will get done.

Make sure that you have an adequate amount of time to get in touch with your teacher whenever necessary. If you fall behind, it will be impossible for you to do so. Generally, you are expected it to try to devote around 15-20 hours per week for a degree course although that may be less depending on your course and the workload.

Online courses are a fantastic way to earn credit learning from home, but they do demand a different set of skills. Be self-disciplined and motivated, and it will be totally worth it

Apply what you have learned

And finally, this goes without saying, the best way to get a high return on your investment is to put the knowledge to good use.

Look for internships, look for jobs, move up and enrol in another program, whatever you decide to do, don’t just leave things as they are.

Image by OrangeacidFlavia FF and Koalazymonkey

The post How To Make The Most of Your Online Course appeared first on InformED.


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