Susan Manning - Online Learning For Dummies

To truly succeed in online learning, it helps to be prepared and take the necessary time to become familiar with your classroom. In many cases, institutions will even open your virtual classroom one or two days before classes officially begin. Take advantage of this opportunity by logging in to your course and becoming familiar with the following aspects:

General course structure

Instructor announcements

Instructor contact information

Syllabus

Calendar

Course policies (including grading)

Flip to Chapter 9for plenty of help with navigating your classroom.

You may think you’re alone on your learning journey just because you’re not physically in the same room or building as your instructor and classmates. Nothing could be further from the truth. As a matter of fact, some of our students have shared with us that they feel more connected to their online peers than they feel about the people they work with daily.

When taking online courses, you have a plethora of academic and technical support. Not only can you connect with your instructor and peers, but most institutions also connect you with academic advisors, technical support staff, guest speakers, and more. Check out Chapter 10for more information on meeting all the people in and around your classroom.

If you ever do feel alone, don’t hesitate to reach out. One way to stay connected to peers is to form a virtual study group that meets in real time (synchronously) each week to discuss course content and upcoming assignments. You can do this by way of several free online tools, such as Google Meet or Zoom.

Though you may have opportunities to communicate with your instructors and peers via voice and/or video, most communication occurs in text. Therefore, communicating clearly, concisely, and respectfully in writing is important.

Online courses employ two standards of writing: formal and casual. Being able to follow the instructor’s cue and write according to the standard of each particular course is important. For the most part, though, initial discussion posts and assignments use formal writing skills, whereas responses to peers and questions are much more conversational.

Chapter 11has full details on how to communicate clearly online.

With freedom comes responsibility. This statement couldn’t be more true when it comes to developing good online study habits. As an online learner, you have more freedom to choose the days and times that you study and complete assignments. This may sound appealing until family and friends want to go see the latest action film or your child begs you to read their favorite book for the 400th time. Developing a strict schedule for studying is important in order to keep up with readings and assignments.

Not only is it helpful to have a set schedule for studying, but you also need to establish efficient and effective study skills to maximize productivity. Looking for patterns within your course schedule, bookmarking important sites such as the library, and writing initial posts offline are all things you can do to use your time more efficiently. Flip to Chapter 12for information on developing good study habits for online classes.

Yep, you read that heading correctly: group work. The fact that your instructor and peers aren’t in your geographical location doesn’t get you out of completing group assignments. Research shows that working in groups is tremendously beneficial, and being able to do it in an online setting takes skill, patience, and a lot of communication. To some of you, this won’t come as a surprise, because more and more people work remotely. Your job is one giant group project!

As with any group-based task, you can do a few things to help make group work more efficient and effective (as you can find out in Chapter 13):

Communicate as soon as possible and as often as possible.

Summarize the project and break it into manageable tasks.

Delegate tasks to group members.

Establish roles.

Document progress.

Most conflicts among group members are about one or more members of the group not doing their share. Documenting progress, or lack thereof, and keeping your instructor in the loop helps keep each member accountable and helps your instructor better facilitate conflict resolution when necessary.

One of the most exciting aspects of learning online is that you can meet others from around the world and learn from them. The Internet has opened possibilities your grandparents could not have imagined. It is not uncommon to have students from multiple continents in one course.

Being a global learner means having respect for cultural differences. It also requires that you coordinate across time zones and that you are helpful, not critical, when it comes to resolving problems that may arise from language differences.

In addition to describing what it’s like to be in a global classroom, we address in Chapter 14how to work and study from afar.

One problem with communicating mostly by text is that anyone can misinterpret what is written. Therefore, keep humor to a minimum and avoid posting questionable content. You also need to recognize when and where to address individuals when problems arise. If you are having a problem with a peer, politely and privately communicate directly with that person. You will want to include your instructor, who can facilitate resolution if necessary.

If your issue is with the instructor, you might take a different approach. For example, have you ever been in a face-to-face course when someone questioned an instructor rudely or otherwise inappropriately? In most cases, the instructor wins and the student ends up looking like a fool. The same is true in the online environment. If you need to question your instructor or another peer, post the question or concern privately and respectfully. In return, your instructor should also communicate concerns privately, along with other personal information, such as your grade and assignment comments.

Part of being respectful and honest is posting original content and giving credit where credit is due when posting someone else’s work. You should cite sources in formal assignments and in everything you post, email, or present. If the idea isn’t yours, cite it! If you have a question about whether to cite something, or if you’re unfamiliar with the proper way to cite sources, ask your instructor or a librarian. We discuss this topic and others related to ethical behavior in Chapter 15.

Institutions often provide instructors with tools to check assignments for originality. These tools include comparing your assignments to a database of other assignments, web content, and dissertations. Know your institution’s guidelines for quoting/citing sources and developing original work. Some schools consider it plagiarism to repurpose an assignment from one class for another. The penalties for plagiarism can be quite severe, including removal from a program. Again, if you have a question about whether you can do something, ask. Don’t assume.