I was having a conversation with my friends from high school last week about how all of our colleges were planning on finishing out the semester. At first, my college was going to be closed until March 30th, but recently decided to cancel all in-person classes for the rest of the semester. Shortly after, all of my friend’s colleges decided to do the same, as have most schools.
With everything going on, it may be even harder to focus on school. I’ve noticed that a lot of people are not fans of online school at all and struggle with staying on track with everything they need to do. Personally, I feel ready for all my classes to transition to online. I’ve always loved online classes and have done so many since my sophomore year. Whether its been semester, summer, or winter break classes, I’ve always followed the same routine and feel like I have the whole online school thing down.
I know everyone’s school is approaching this a different way. Whether it’s live chat rooms or a work at your own pace situation, here’s my tips for doing online school.
Keep in contact with your professors
Don’t be afraid to email your professors if you have questions. Just because you wont be seeing them in person anymore, does not mean they don’t want to help you. If anything, they encourage you even more to reach out. I know for me, all my professors have said that they will be checking their email even more now to make sure they help us as much as possible. Use this to your advantage, they want the best for you!
Work in the morning/don’t wait until the last minute
This may be difficult for those who’s classes are still being held during normal class times. But if you do have the choice, work in the morning! If you wait until later in the day, you’re either not going to do it at all, or not put all your effort into it. It’s less stress on yourself and you can go through the rest of your day knowing you have everything done. Waiting until the last minute is never a good idea. I used to do this in my sophomore year because I had a lot of misconceptions about online classes. I quickly realized that doing an assignment forty five minutes before it was due, was not going to cut it. It’s so much less stressful when you get things done early.
Work at your own pace and take breaks
This may seem like its opposite with what I just said about working in the morning, but its not. Working at your own pace means take whatever time you need to do your work. If you find it better to finish all your work in one day, do that. If you are more comfortable spending an hour each morning doing work, do that. Find what works for you but what ever you do do, make sure you are taking breaks. Again, whatever works for you. I personally like to work for an hour and then take a fifteen minute break to take my eyes off my computer and go do something else.
Plan it out
This is a must for me. Each week, I like to write down what I need to do for each class and the deadlines. Seeing it all planned out, helps me not forget anything, and my brain feels less scrambled. Whether you do this on a word document, the notes app in your phone, or an actual piece of paper (my favorite because being able to cross things off is the best), it’s so helpful in helping you stay on top of your work.
Act like you’re in class
This means no phone and no sitting in bed. Sit at a desk or table and keep your phone in another room. This way, you’re not tempted to go on it and get distracted for who knows how long. Also, not sitting in your bed will help you stay awake and focused on the work you need to do.
Know what you need to do
When it comes down to it, the only person that can keep you on track, is you. Know what you need to do and do it. Just because it’s online does not mean its not serious. What helps me stay motivated is knowing that I’m lucky to be able to further my education. Education is so important and we need to appreciate the opportunity that we’ve been given to learn. I’m not going to waste all the money and time I’m spending to end up with grades/work that I’m not proud of. Find what keeps you motivated!
What are some of your tips for online school? Which do you prefer? Good luck to everyone whose classes were moved to online, I know you can do it!
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All these tips are so important. I try to work from 9 to 5 everyday on my University work as it makes me feel productive. Having a clear schedule of what to do each day has also helped me so much with my studies x
Yes! Organization and planning is key! I would be lost without a schedule!