By Susan Smith Nash, Ph.D.
No matter what course you’re taking online, there are a few key factors and approaches that will help assure your success –in obtaining a good grade, and also in having a very positive experience.
Positive Emotions. One way to make sure that you are motivated in the course, and that you are not having to overcome internal resistance is to find something about the course that engages you emotionally. Are you intrigued? Curious? Happy? If you examine your emotional response to the course and find that you are unhappy and frustrated, it is a good idea to step back a moment and ask yourself what it is about the course that is giving you a negative reaction. Once you discover the source of your emotions, you can start taking positive steps to improve the situation.
Good relations with fellow students. Maintain a positive attitude about your fellow learners, and always look for positive elements in your discussion board postings and in collaborative work. If you find you have bad feelings due to interactions with fellow students, be sure to let your instructor know.
Personalize your experience. If you have a chance to upload a photo of yourself, your pets, or something you’d like your fellow students to know about you, be sure to do so. You will be amazed at how helpful it is to have a lively space to go to. Share information about yourself, and find ways to relate what you are doing to your own interests and goals. Keep in mind that audio and video are great ways to communicate your message(s).
Develop an online learning community. Successful eLearners develop support networks in their classes, and feel comfortable about asking each other questions when they do not know the answer. Encouraging each other and sharing study tips and insights can also be very motivating.
Create mental file cabinets. Find a good way to classify and store the information that you’re learning. Once you have developed mental file cabinets (or “schemata”), you may find it easier to recall the information when you need it.
Get the best technology you can. Having a reliable computer that has the software you need, as well as connectivity will be a huge help. If you do not feel comfortable downloading the programs and plug-ins you need (Flash, Shockwave, Adobe Acrobat) you need, then use it as an opportunity to practice. The more times you download and install programs, the more comfortable you will be.
Reduce “techno anxiety” by having a back-up plan. If you travel frequently and use other computers or connectivity, or if your access to the Internet varies in speed and consistency, it is important to develop a strategy for overcoming any challenges. Be sure to develop a contingency plan and to have back-up archives, files, and ways to access the Internet.
Learning outcomes focus. Take a good look at the learning outcomes for the course and develop a list of how the material you are reading and the work you are doing for the class relate to the outcomes. Take the mental file cabinets you have built in your mind, look inside them, and consider how they relate to the stated learning outcomes. If they do not match, you may need to reconfigure your filing system and rearrange them.
Develop patterns and procedures for organizing your online research. Your essays and term papers will be much better, as well as easier to write if you become comfortable with the online library and start to develop a method for targeting the sources you need. The key is to match the journals with your topic, and to narrow your topic sufficiently so that you do not waste a lot of time in distractions, or going off in tangents.
Follow a regular schedule. Time management is very important. Be sure to give yourself plenty of time to do the tasks that you need to do, and avoid putting them off until the last minute.
Map a strategy for research papers. Sketch an outline of the procedure you will use to develop your research papers. It is always good to go through the following stages: brainstorm, narrow thesis, develop outline, list possible sources and journals, find research sources, jot down the main idea for each research source, and relevance to your paper, expand draft, and expand again. Finally, prune and pare for clarity and grammar.
Believe in yourself! I’ve put this last, but it should also go first. Believing in yourself and developing positive beliefs about your ability to succeed in an online course is absolutely vital. Each time you have success, reward yourself by telling yourself that you’re doing well. If you are disappointed, use it as an opportunity to analyze what went wrong and to communicate in a positive, solution-seeking manner with your instructor, the technical support staff, and your fellow students.
Watch Susan!
http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-8063795562472037046&q=elearning+x&hl=en