1. Understand the deadlines – Follow the course outline and check it frequently – Many online courses have tight deadlines and teachers expect students to meet them for assignments, assessments and even chat sessions.

We have seen many students miss these deadlines. A big cause of confusion can be the midnight deadline if students are not careful. In this example a teacher states that the “Quiz” is due on Jan 2, 12:00am. What this means is that you really need to complete the Quiz on Jan 1, because the “Quiz” will close right when Jan 2 starts.

Pay close attention to time zones as well. If your course is hosted in a time zone other than your own, you will likely be expected to submit assignments by that time unless specified otherwise by your instructor.

2. Technology can fail, be prepared – Unfortunately, and while it is generally infrequent, technology can fail from time to time. Your computer may not boot up, the power may go out, your Internet connection may cut out briefly and many other unplanned things could transpire. So always try to do important assessments ahead of time so that you can communicate your difficulties to your instructor and make other arrangements before the deadline.

In the event you encounter a technical problem, try and document as much as you can. If you called your ISP about your internet troubles, have them send you a support ticket confirmation or if your browser stopped working, try taking a screenshot. Documenting any technical problems you have will help show your instructor that you are being academically honest.

3. Use a reliable computer and internet connection – Ensure that you have a reliable Internet connection. For example, if your using a Wi-Fi connection and it loses the signal from time to time, I wouldn’t recommend writing your final exam or conducting any other major assessments using this connection. Also keep your machine clean of viruses and spyware by using up-to-date protection software.

4. Eliminate social distractions – e-Learning gives you the flexibility to study where you want but make sure you don’t study anywhere where you will be distracted. This could include loud areas or in front of the T.V. But choosing a good locating to study is only half the game plan. Your computer can also be a source of many distractions. Make sure you close all instant messaging programs and not distract yourself with Facebook, Youtube and a host of other addictive sites. Trust us, a quick 5 minute break to “just check something” could side track you for an hour.

Lastly, put your cell phone on silent and try really hard not to look at it while you study. Just focus on what you’re doing and you’ll get more done and be back to your social life faster.

5. Reward yourself – e-Learning is just like a regular classroom experiece, if you feel you have done well and achieved your e-Learning goals reward yourself go out for a movie with friends, socialize grab a coffee, or just ensure you take a break from studying when you know you earned one.

6. Save your work- When typing long essays into the e-Learning system, make sure you save as often as possible if such an option exists.

If you are typing in Microsoft word keep saving every few minutes. If you are typing into a text input box or discussion board in a learning management system ensure you try to save every few minutes as well. If such an option doesn’t exist, a good strategy is to always compose all writings larger than 1 paragraph in notepad or Word and then copy and paste the content when finished. This way in case you’re browser crashes or your session times out your hard work won’t be lost.

Most browsers will close a session after 60-90 minutes of inactivity which may cause any submissions you have to error and consequently be lost. Clicking “Save” on a learning management system reactivates the session.

7. Feel free to communicate – If you are stuck on an assignment it is a good idea to communicate with classmates using the Wiki, email, Chat, Forum, instant messaging or whatever communication tools are available. If there is something you can’t figure, out try emailing or calling the instructor. When doing so, make sure that the teacher specified this method as being appropriate to contact them.

If the instructor is fine in regards to calling him, you may want to use good judgement and not to call at an inappropriate time. If your instructor doesn’t post “office hours” or specific times when they are available to be contacted with student questions, good times to call would generally be business hours 9am-5pm and not after 9pm.

Remember, even if you have a firm understanding of the subject matter, participating and communicating with others will make your learning experience more enjoyable and effective.

8. Create a schedule – Even though this is an online course, you may want to look at the syllabus and create a schedule and then set personal deadlines that you want to meet.

Putting off all of the work until the end of the course may overwhelm you and you may realize at the last minute that there is simply too much to do or your quality of work may suffer as you rush to finish everything.

Also keep in mind that online courses can actually have more deadlines in some instances when compared to in person classes. Some instructors make participation mandatory and will set deadlines for required forum participation, wiki postings and even assign grades for participating in a chat.

9. Use proper netiquette – Just because you are taking an online doesn’t mean that you’re invisible. Avoid using inappropriate or vulgar comments and statements on forums, chats, private messages and wikis.

Always conduct yourself as you would in a real face-to-face interaction and be respectful of other learners.

Before you press the “Send” button think twice and consider if what you are saying is appropriate or could be misinterpreted as offensive. With online learning, based on the persmission settings, sometimes messages can not be removed once sent. So always think of what you are saying before you say it.

Remember debating is encouraged and stimulates learning. But making offensive comments to other learners would not be considered debating and may cause you to be removed from the course or penalized.

10. Login frequently – We recommend that students login daily at the very least to check for updates. You never know when the teacher will post a change or even add a bonus assignment. Logging on keeps you updated and better able to schedule your tasks. Usually each course will have a course news or updates section where you will be able to find the latest news and changes related to the course. Some more advanced learning management systems can also email you a copy of all forum posts for the day, content update notifications and even forward your private messages. If you’re on the go and have a smart phone or tablet, make sure you take advantage of these time saving features if their available.

Remember, you can be the brightest student but if you rarely login you will never know when these changes occur and it will impact you negatively in the course.

11. Don’t cheat yourself – Many online courses require you to conduct your tests fully online and independently. This means you shouldn’t use Google to find answers, call another person, or do anything else that would undermine the integrity of the course.

Recognize that if you are caught for such actions, you could possibly fail the course, be removed from the entire program, or face disciplinary actions for breaking the “academic dishonesty policy”. Being honest and taking the time to actually learn the content will benefit you in the future by giving you new knowledge that you can use in the real world. Remember knowledge is power!

12. Understand the course type – Some students may get into the mindset that because they are taking an online course they will never have to show up to class, attend meetings or write any in person assessments. In actuality, some courses have both offline and online components. Off line components could include course labs, meetings, in person tests, and even lectures. If your course has a heavy off-line requirement in addition to a supplementary online component, this may be what is referred to as a hybrid course.

So always find out from your institution if the courses you are interested in are hybrid courses, partially offline, or fully online. You wouldn’t want any surprises half-way into the course or have to drop out because of a scheduling conflict.

These are just a few of the challenges we’ve seen students face over the years. With over half a decade of real world experience directly assisting students online, we have come to truly understand their needs. Contact Scholarix to learn how we can help make your students’ transition into online learning smooth and rewarding.

Author Bio: Adam Mastalerz is a e-Learning Consultant and the Joint-CEO & Co-Founder of Scholarix e-Learning Solutions Co-Author Kevin Fernando – Kevin is a Toronto SEO consultant and the Joint-CEO & Co-Founder of Scholarix e-Learning Solutions Scholarix provides LMS Setup and management, online course development

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