Tips for working on online courses:
- Give yourself dedicated time to work on each course
Getting in the swing of managing all of your classes on your own time is really tough, and can get out of hand quickly. Make sure you have some dedicated time set apart that’s just for each course. This can be modified when you need to—for example, spending more time on one class because of a test might mean you skip a few other classes for the day. But when you have time carved out, you can work through each class’s work rather than waiting for deadlines and rushing.
- Check in with others
Take advantage of texting/ WordPress/ Google Docs/ social media/ etc. to check in with other people in the course. Sit down and do work at the same time so that you have someone holding you accountable for your work.
- Keep up with the syllabus
Do the work listed on the syllabus when it’s due. Be wary of falling behind, even on readings that don’t have any particular assignments due with them—they’re a lot harder to do later or cram, so keep up with them as you go so you don’t have to try that.
- Be nice to yourself
Balancing online work—especially in the middle of a semester, and in a stressful situation—is really hard, especially when there may be a bunch of people in your workspace all at once (I’m sharing space with my husband, who’s also working from home, and my dog, Pippin, who’s distractingly cute). If you do have issues, whether they be tech, time management, work, or something else-related, give yourself the space to work through it. We’re all in this weird boat together, so we can figure it out.
- If you have issues or questions, let me know ASAP
I can’t rely on facial expressions, body language, or making awkward jokes to know whether or not you’re having difficulties or are confused when we’re all at home, so if you have any issues at all, bring them up to me right away. I can’t promise to always have a solution, but if I know you’re struggling I can help you brainstorm and I have some context if you’re suddenly having difficulty with an assignment.
What other suggestions do you have for working at home, or what concerns do you have? Talk about online work in the comments.
English 2323-020 
Although online school is very different from attending school everyday there are some perks to it. I agree with everything that you are saying in this post. I agree especially with being nice to yourself. I feel like everyone is feeling the same way and nobody truly knows what they are doing. We all are doing our best with the situation and balance is a big part of it. I still have to go to work and then come home and finish some things up with school and it can all be stressful at times. I think we just need to pace ourselves and everything is going to work out.
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I really appreciate you leaving some tips about how to take on online classes. Today I actually just started updating my calendar to my new schedule and realized I have quite a few assignments coming up and that I already missed one. Even though i’m upset about it he’s a pretty lenient teacher so I think i’ll be okay. Because of that though, I will be dedicating more time to my acc and high school classes to make sure I stay caught up. I realized it can be really easy to fall behind during this time but i’m gonna do the best I can to keep up using some of your tips 🙂
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I’ve taken a few online courses before, but not as many as now. It’s been really different because of how syllabus’ change, and now we all have to adjust to having either more or less time to complete assignments. It’s really a matter of us all staying focused while at home because I know I can get very distracted while at home when there’s so much going on at once. So I agree, and appreciate everything you’ve said, especially you being open to help us more.
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It sure is odd transitioning from everything being structured and orderly to now having to work on everything, including my time management, by myself. It is a nice feeling to have friendly reminders that I’m not alone entirely, with people to reach out to about my issues whether that be peers or officials/professors. Having taken an online course before, I can’t say that I am completely foreign to this concept but at the same time I dislike it all the same, but at least now I know who the people I’m interacting with are. I appreciate the tips given, and have plentiful distractions of my own. My only wish and concern is what will happen to everyone in the ECHS program, because with a big switch such as this i know that there is a chance something could go wrong, and I would hate to see anyone fail in our last semester of our last year.
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transitioning from normal class to online class has definitely been a struggle. i think the hardest part of it all is staying focused and using my time wisely. i used to count on my friends to tell me when assignments were due but now i’m learning to rely only on myself and although it is difficult i believe that it is necessary. this is my first time taking a online class and going into it i didn’t really know what to expect and i could say that i wasn’t necessarily prepared either. despite all this, i know with determination we will all pass and get through this.
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Transitioning from a tradition class setting to online setting at first was a bit daunting and it still is. I think that it was daunting because I am now responsible of making time for each of my classes and doing the work for them. I had to buy a big calendar to hang on my wall so I could now when assignments are due which is new for me. Even though I am not just a big fan of doing online classes, I have discovered that I now have more time for myself and to work of assignments.
One thing that I found that helped me was taking walks (in my property) in the morning. This really helped me focus during my morning class and in my afternoon class.
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I have always been a hands on person in my learning, so switching to online school has been a wake up call. I know that with this online school it is all on me now. I have to rely on myself to get my work done. my biggest thing I am learning is time management.
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