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When going to college, motivation and goal setting are two very important things. As students, we have to find ways to motivate ourselves to be successful in our studies. We all have personal issues, long shifts at work, and just generally bad days. It can be hard to stay motivated about doing an assignment after a long day. However, setting long term and short term goals can remedy that issue. Long-term goals allow us to have an idea of where we would like to end up after all of the work has been put in. It gives us a guide to where we would like to head in the future; for example getting a degree However, if you focus only on long term goals it can get very hectic and overwhelming. This is where short term goals come in. Short term goals allow us to focus more on the “right now” and how we will get to our end goal in steps. My personal long term goal at the moment is to get my associate of arts degree on a regional campus. I plan on graduating next semester. I set short term goals for myself every week to help me stay on track. I have a whiteboard with all of my current classes written on it and I write out every assignment I have for the week. Goals help us stay motivated, because we feel accomplished when we complete a task. It’s also important to remember SMART goal guidelines when setting goals. You don’t want to set a goal that you won’t have a chance of succeeding at, because that isn’t helpful. Goals help us to stay on track to where we want to get and keep us motivated as students!

It can be difficult to absorb long articles or blocks of text on a computer screen. One way this class has taught me to better absorb the readings is to set goals for the reading and ask myself questions. I feel if you are trying to get certain information from a reading, it makes it easier to retain it for later use. According to an article we read by Watkins, here are some things to consider while reading:

What’s the purpose of this reading?

See what information previews the text or article

Create a peaceful, focused  learning environment to read your text

Interact with the material

Ask questions. What are the main points? What purpose did the author have in writing the article?

Take notes while you read

Increase your reading proficiency, don’t just skim an article.

Lookover your notes/review the material

Further develop your reading and writing skills

Keeping these things in mind while reading a long article can help to keep us focused as learners. This has personally allowed me to feel like a more active participant in my learning.

1. As an online student, it’s especially important to make your own space for school. It is much easier to focus in a calm, organized environment. Having this space allows us to truly focus on our learning instead of electronics, friends, etc. distracting us. This also allows us to keep organized notes, folders, study tools, etc. in one place so that it is easy to find. Going to college online takes a lot of self discipline to sit down and get your work done/study on your own. I personally have a spare bedroom in my house with a desk that I use for my school work. Having a space for school will make it that much easier to focus on what is at hand.

2. Note taking strategies are very important. When watching lectures online, sometimes it can be hard to keep up and retain the information. Each individual will have a shorthand style that will make sense to them, and it is helpful to figure out that style. It can be difficult to write out full sentences for note taking. I use shortened words, reduced vowels, and acronyms to keep me on track. I personally don’t use first letter abbreviations or symbols as I think they are confusing.This allows me to stay on track with the content I’m learning, but still be able to make out the ideas later for studying.

3. In an online class, it can feel much more isolating than an in person class. You can’t raise your hand and ask a question, or discuss notes with the person next to you. However, there are ways to remedy this. You can reach out to your other classmates on discussion boards, you can organize study groups, you can use various on campus tutoring centers, or you can reach out to teacher during their office hours if you are having trouble. It’s important to use these resources and to reach out if you feel that you need help. Online classes are just different than in person classes and require a small amount of adjustment to communicate with others.