Three simple ways to succeed in an online class.

In the past semester of online classes, I have had to do a lot of adjusting. Here are three things that I think will help anyone succeed in online learning.

  1. Familiarize yourself with the course expectations and deadlines
    • This means you have to read the syllabus in its entirety. All of the information about the course is located in the syllabus. Reading the syllabus and referring to it when necessary allows you to complete assignments correctly, on time, and to the standards of your teacher.
  2. Develop a plan
    • As with anything you do, you should have a plan when it comes to learning. Using a calendar, planner, or other tool, such as trello, to keep track of assignments and other tasks promotes productivity and greatly reduces your chances of missing easy points and getting behind. There’s nothing worse than trying to get your grade up later on because you missed a few easy assignments.
  3. Ask for help
    • There is no shame in asking for assistance when you get stuck. Ask questions often and ask them early to allow your teacher or friend to have time to answer you. Sometimes all you need is a different perspective or person to bounce ideas off of in order to find success.

Visual Learning through consistent practice.

Something that I have discovered about myself is that I learn best when I dedicate time to practice my knowledge. Prior to college, school was something that came naturally to me, and I never really had to dedicate a lot of effort to do well. I am now faced with harder content at a faster rate than I was used to. During the transition to college, I realized that if I intend to keep my grades up and succeed at school, I would have to practice my knowledge on a regular basis. Reading the book and taking notes is very important. You can’t expect yourself to succeed if you don’t have a good foundation. Next comes completing homework assignments and projects on time. This might sound obvious and cliché, but there is a lot to be learned from homework and the more you apply your knowledge, the better you will remember it. Lastly, and most importantly, you need to go above and beyond the assigned work. For me, re working homework problems, finding study guides, and watching youtube videos is an effective strategy to solidify my knowledge. This step is open to interpretation. If flash cards work for you, use them! Mnemonic devices make things easy to remember? Try using them in your notes! Practice really helps, especially when it comes to that exam content that was covered months ago.

Task Management Made Easy

Something that I have always struggled with is task management. I found myself forgetting easy tasks and assignments left and right, and it began to have a really bad effect on my grades. Luckily I was introduced to a great free website called Trello. Using Trello, I can have all of my assignments and tasks along with due dates, attachments, and more located on one central page to refer to. Trello is extremely convenient, as it is also an application found on smart devices. Perhaps my favorite feature of Trello is the layout of tasks and ways to customize and specialize the way my tasks are organized. Consistent practice of task management will always lead to an increase in productivity. As a college student, time is scarce and productivity should be sought after.