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September 15th is National Online Learning Day! National Online Learning Day, observed on every September 15, is a day to recognize and celebrate the importance of online learning and the progress made in advancing distance learning. Throughout the last few years, students of ALL ages were forced to learn how to learn online. Some kids may not even know the difference! As the pandemic slowly brought students back to their classrooms, many colleges have adopted an increased assortment of online classes. Learning in college in an online class can be fruitful, but there are ways you can help make your online learning more productive!
Here are 8 tips for success learning online!
Establish Your “Learning Zone”
Don’t set up shop for class next to your Playstation. Whether you’re writing a class assignment or listening in to a lecture, you’re going to want to ensure you have a nice, distraction free, “learning zone.” A place where you feel comfortable, but not too comfortable, where you won’t lose focus.
Set a Schedule for Yourself
Your online classes may already have some scheduled times to meet, but consider setting aside times to work on your assignments for each particular class. If you have several online courses flowing at one time, consider making yourself a little schedule for working on those classes during a specific period so you don’t forget anything.
Meet Your Classmates!
One of the best parts of college is meeting new people and the growth that occurs from those new people. Just because a class is virtual doesn’t mean you can’t make a new friend or 2! (or 10!) Meet up at the library or in the union so you can go over questions and details about the class together. Don’t do it all alone!
Break Up Your Tasks
You don’t need to do all your work for all your online classes in one sitting. Part of creating your schedule is breaking up your classes, but within those classes you’ll have assignments and studying to get done. Don’t cram. Break up your tasks and give yourself breaks from looking at the screen so you can remain productive and creative.
Give Yourself a Reward!
As you accomplish your tasks, don’t be afraid to reward yourself! A reward can be as simple as a fresh cup of coffee, a trip to the cafe for your favorite snack, or even a quick video game session. Whatever you feel will motivate you, provide yourself a reward for all your accomplishments!
Learn About How You Learn
Everyone learns differently, whether in a classroom or online. Now that we’ve set some ground rules for where you’re going to work, it’s time to start understanding HOW you learn best. Some students prefer to learn early in the morning, some are better late nighters. Some kids learn better with coffee, some learn better with a routine workout prior. Some may prefer to print out notes to read on paper, some may prefer to listen to notes on audio. Give yourself some time to find YOUR learning style.
Participate!
You get out of college what you put in, and if nobody participates, nobody gets much out of it. This is especially true for online courses. If no one is participating in class discussions, start the conversation. If no one is taking the lead on a group assignment, take control. If you find yourself falling behind, don’t be afraid to voice your opinion to the professor. The more you put into your courses, the more you will learn.
Practice Healthy Habits
One way to ensure you don’t get your remote classwork done is living an unhealthy lifestyle. By ensuring you always get enough proper sleep, nutritious food, and staying hydrated, you can certainly make your life a lot easier in college. Easier said than done as so many opportunities present themselves, but if you are proactively organized, and set time aside in your “learning zone,” you can give yourself time for fun! Get the work done first!
These are only a few ways you can get more out of your online courses. What’d we forget? If you have a particularly special learning tip for students in college with online classes, we’d love to hear it! Send us a DM or drop a comment on our social media to let us know and we might make a post about it to feature you! We recently selected 3 winners for the WNY Young Achievers Scholarship and will be featuring the winners in a video series soon! Stay tuned!