Education Articles from College Matching Service

When you make the decision to go to an online college, it’s not always easy to have a space for yourself, especially if you have a family or a small home. It may be that there’s a work area around there, but then your kids or relatives keep bugging you around and such. Here are some guidelines that will assist you on deciding how to design and set-up a home office area just for online learning!

Find some space. If possible, try to dedicate a whole room to your new library or home office. Otherwise, it may be easier just creating a dual-purpose room like a guest room and home office, or setting up a home office area within an unused portion of the house (like the attic or basement). Make sure your room has a door that closes; this will help cut down on noise and interruptions (like the people passing by behind your back). By identifying a specific area or room as your home office, it sends a clear message: “When I am in here, it is because I am studying.”

Pick a quiet location. Road traffic is noisy, so try to pick a room that does not have a window facing a main thoroughfare. The kitchen is also a hotspot for noise: clanging dishes and pans; cupboards swinging shut; the refrigerator door being opened and shut. You may not notice small or repetitive noises now, but when you are reviewing for an exam or drafting a 15-page paper, these little distractions can have a big impact on your concentration.

Electronic resources abound, and they can be of very high quality. The best way to find peer-reviewed, high-quality journal articles is to access them through your online library, or to purchase the articles through an article provider. However, there are excellent sources that are both accurate and of high quality on the Web, and they are often free and not password protected.

Whether you are looking for journal articles, monographs, factual information, or high-quality publicly available resources, the same principles apply. Narrow your topic, make sure your search terms are relevant and focused, make sure your articles and your topic are in alignment, examine your sources for bias and distortion, and finally, make sure that your online class provides sufficient support and background for your argument. Let’s expand the steps and look at them again. It is useful to look at each of the stages individually and to think about how and why you will be engaged in activities.

Create an annotated bibliography. As you download and read your articles, you can keep track of them by creating an “electronic notebook” which would consist of a citation of your sources. Create an entry for each source. Use the appropriate style (MLA, APA, CBE, Chicago, etc.). After you have completed that, be sure to write a one-sentence overview/summary of the article and how it relates to your topic.

Update your outline. Re-examine your thesis. Look at your argumentation structure. Does each paragraph and subsection help support your thesis? How does your research fit? Determine where you have gaps, redundancies, or where your sources take you on a tangent.

Fill in the gaps. Make a list of the places in your paper where you need additional support for your argument. Then, after eliminating redundancies, map where you need to fill gaps, and where your argument needs additional support.

What have others said? As you conduct preliminary research in the library, you will find books and articles on your topic. As you read the material, try to form an idea of what the major issues have been in the discussions about your topic. For example, if your topic is on how stem cells could treat Lou Gehrig’s Disease, you will need to have an idea of who the first people who started researching the topic. You will also need to identify the sides of the argument. Who is for it? Who is against it? Why? What are the issues? Once you have a sense of the main players, you can start to do searches based on author name as well as key words or topics. Ironically, in some cases, you may even have to be aware that the site may not have the original version of the information you’re citing. They may, in actuality, be borrowing from another site. This is particularly the case with Web sites and services that subscribe to Weblogs or where the information is mirrored because they have chosen to pull the entire article in the feed.

Organize your sources, articles, and notes. After you have found your articles, be sure to organize them so that you have a sense of where they will go in your online class paper. Keep your primary thesis in mind, and the points you are trying to make and will support with evidence and research findings from your articles. This is a good time to return to your outline and to start mapping out where you plan to use your sources and citations.

Make the most of any group or team time. If you are assigned to a team, make time to do your best on the assignment. Even if your team can only meet for 15 minutes every week during the team project time, do it. You should use the telephone, instant messaging, or the class chat room for your team time. Save the discussion board and e-mailing for exchanging files and polishing your group project. You will get to know your fellow classmates and get a better grade in everyone gets to know each other, even just a little bit. (Hint: Online courses call instant messaging, chat rooms, and telephone conversations synchronous, meaning at the same time, and call discussion postings and e-mails asynchronous, meaning not at the same time.)

Look for opportunities to meet other online students. They don’t have to be in the same class or even in the same university because there are many similarities when taking online classes anywhere. Local public libraries, community colleges, and other places are good starting points for locating students. If you are unable to find people in your community, look online or right here in the eLearners community. Even if you are not interested in replying to a blog or a commercial chat, you will probably see some of the same experiences you are having appearing in these places. (Hint: Check to see if your school hosts local meetings or events and attend them.)

Establish a relationship with your professor. If you are truly interested in the subject you are taking, e-mail your professor some very well thought out questions about the subject. Most professors will answer and be flattered you are thinking about the course beyond the assignments and activities. Also, many professors enjoy sharing their expertise so don’t be shy! (Hint: Online professors can become mentors, reviewers, and references for later projects just like classroom-based professors.)

Wear your school colors with pride! Purchase a sweatshirt with your online university’s logo or slap a bumper sticker on your car. Believe it or not, just associating yourself with a school helps makes you feel a part of the school and once you feel part of the school, you will feel less isolated. (Hint: Most online bookstores will sell you logo items right along with your books!)

Keep active in your online class. Visit your course on a regular basis, just like you were going to class. Keep up on the discussion postings, turning in your papers on time, and do the readings. It will make you feel more connected if you are in the mindset of a regular student. If you’re struggling to stay focused check out Alistapart.com and Davecheong.com for some great articles. (Hint: Make sure to respond to e-mails as you would like others to respond to yours.)

Talk to others about your course. Let your friends and family know you are taking an online course and share some of the things you are learning. Sharing will not only help you feel less isolated, it will help you absorb the information and make your online work more exciting. (Hint: Don’t bore people with your knowledge, just share a little about what it’s like for you.)

Use the course chat room or instant messaging. If it’s available, get to know your fellow students in the class chat room or through instant messaging. Ask your buddy to meet you at a certain time and use that time to informally discuss the class. Invite others into the conversation by sending an invitation to all your classmates – some may come and some may not. Your professor may notice and admire your commitment to the course which could translate into a better grade. If you have a team assignment, pick the chat room or instant messaging for one of your meetings. (Hint: Some chat rooms have a record feature and your professor and all your classmates can read the transcript, so keep your comments positive!)

Chatting during an online class may be a breeze, but it can even be a lot easier if you do these measures:
Be on time. Just be on time for your chat. In fact, be a little early so you can get the feel of the chat room. If you are going to be late, make sure you let your professor know ahead of time or see if you can reschedule. When you come to a chat late, it’s like coming to a class late, everyone, including the professor, notices. (Hint: Most class chats are recorded, so the professor has the exact time you entered the chat in the transcript!)

Have your references on hand. Make sure you have your paper, your textbooks, and any other documentation readily available, so you can refer to it to support your ideas or you can check your interpretation with the other students in the chat room. (Hint: If you want to reference something specific in a reading you know the whole chat room is using — like the textbook, just refer to the page; don’t type the whole thing in.)

Avoid disruptions during the chat. A chat room where the professor asks a student a question and gets no response, especially if the student has been responding quickly, indicates the student isn’t there. It gets uncomfortable for everyone, so make sure your chat has your full attention. If given the option, select a chat time where you know you will not be interrupted, avoid the temptation to check your e-mail or you’re my space page while in the chat room, and keep focused. (Hint: If the chat is just not moving fast enough for you, make notes on a sheet of paper about the ideas you are having during the chat.)

Expect the unexpected. Even with the best of technology, something can go wrong. You could lose power, others could lose power, the website could go down, you might have to miss because of something unexpected at the last minute, etc. If something happens, don’t panic. E-mail your professor as soon as possible. Be open and honest and ask how you can make up for your absence. (Hint: If the professor lets you copy the transcript and interject your comments — don’t destroy the flavor of the chat by over stating your position because you have time. Just write your comments and ideas exactly as if you had stayed in the chat. No one likes a show-off.)

Now your professor wants you to attend a live chat session with some of your classmates – it’s a chance to show your stuff, but how can you be effective? Should you be formal or informal? What about introductions?
Despite its great convenience, online courses can at times make you feel like it’s your first day of Kindergarten all over again. So we’ve gathered some simple tips to help you become more effective in online chats.

Know the rules of netiquette. Netiquette is simply respecting other people in the chat room. That means waiting until others are done “speaking,” using appropriate language, and sticking to the subject. (Hint: Your school should have chat room rules posted. If you don’t know them, ask your professor before the chat room starts.)

Check out the chat speed beforehand. If you are on dial-up, it may make the chat room exceedingly slow, which means when you type in a long sentence, the others in the chat room will be waiting to see what you are typing. If you are on dial-up and can’t get high speed access, then let the chat room participants know, type only a few words before sending them, or write your responses in an editor and copy and paste them into the chat. (Hint: You can have two windows open at once, just use the minimize button at the top of your Internet browser.)

Review the materials. Think of your chat as a classroom debate. If your professor told you there would be a debate about a topic in class and you had to participate, you would make sure you knew the topic, right? Well, in a chat room, you need to do the same thing – know your topic. (Hint: Most professors will post the topic for the chat room beforehand in the assignments.)

Trade email address with your peers. Make the other online students your allies. They can help you study, answer your questions, and remind you of any upcoming deadlines. Best of all, they can act as a sort of support group. Online courses can be grueling, especially if you’re already involved in a career and family activities that make up a large part of your day. Sometimes it’s nice to just chat with someone who knows exactly what you’re going through.

Acquaint yourself with the class structure. Each online course has its own structure. Spend a few minutes exploring the course webpage before jumping into the lessons. Make sure you understand how you can access all of the necessary online class components (lessons, lectures, chat rooms, message boards, multimedia presentations, assignment submission forms, etc.) Take note of any optional components that can be used to help you with your coursework.

Record tests and assignments on your calendar. Don’t expect your online class professor to give you regular reminders. Many instructors only mention big assignments at the beginning of the online course. As soon as you receive a syllabus, record all of the assignments, tests, essays, and projects on your personal calendar.

Establish a regular study time. Figure out how much study time you will need each week and set a regular schedule. Let your friends and family members know that you’ll be unavailable during that time. If you establish this routine early on, you’ll be more likely to stick to it.

Get a head start on the assigned work. Jumpstart your online course by beginning upcoming assignments and papers during your first week as a student. When the assignment deadlines draw near, you’ll feel confident knowing much of the work is already completed.

You participate in group discussion, academic debate, and social dialogue, which eliminate the isolation of traditional correspondence study and provide a peer group for support when you enroll in online courses. When you think about it, try to imagine having all the good and advantage of a bachelors degree a few steps away from you or at a touch of a small mouse. Having four-year college degrees might seem expensive. If you worry about paying for your degree, don’t forget that colleges and universities offer dozens of ways to slash college costs, from student loans to scholarships to work-study programs. Taking online courses can be a little like taking course in a foreign country.

Most of us are still learning the norms and expectations of the online environment. Having online courses will certainly let you achieve these benefits and so much more simply because of the ease and comfort that comes to having an online bachelors degree. Even though the technology is wonderful and exciting, we would never say that this environment is the right learning environment for every student. It works well for some students most of the time. It provides exciting opportunities for people who are constrained by time, place or other factors. Having online courses will certainly let you achieve these benefits and so much more simply because of the ease and comfort that comes to having an online bachelors degree.

The online courses focus strongly on the interactive or cooperative methods of education, only achievable in groups.

Some people just do not have any idea what are advantages that there are when considering top online schools. To join in top online schools is much less intimidating than “in the classroom.” Anonymity provides students a level playing field undisturbed by bias caused by seating arrangement, gender, race and age. Students can also think longer about what they want to say and add their comments when ready. In a traditional class room, the conversation could have gone way past the point where the student wants to comment.

The top online school environment makes instructors more approachable. Students can talk openly with their teachers through online chats, email and in newsgroup discussions, without waiting for office hours that may not be convenient. Because there are no geographic barriers to online learning, students can find diversity of course material that may not be available to them where they live or work. This is especially true for professional training such as medical billing training or purchasing training and for students in remote rural areas that cannot support college or vocational training centers. This option for communication provides enhanced contact between instructors and students. Course material is accessible 24 hours a day 7 days a week. Students have the ability to read and re read lectures, discussions, explanations and comments. Often spoken material in the classroom passes students by due to a number of distractions, missed classes, tiredness, laziness or boredom.

Students can “attend” a course at anytime, from anywhere.