3 Tips for Dealing With Online Classes
Since the age of six, you’re used to spending most of your day at school. You’re normally in a classroom with a teacher and classmates. And you have to follow a set of rules, different from those you have at home.
These days, home and school are the same place. Are you having trouble keeping up? Follow these 3 tips to deal with online classes.
Contents:
A Classroom in Your Home
Before online classes, you had to wake up early enough to get ready, have breakfast and go to school. By the time your classes started, you were ready to focus and learn.
With online classes, you don’t have to leave your house to learn, so it’s tempting to sleep until the last possible minute. But if you wake up 15 minutes before your first lesson, you won’t be able to focus.
Try to keep the same habits as when you had to go to school. Wake up at least an hour before class and follow your usual morning routine. Plus, there’s an upside: you don’t have to travel to school. Now, you have extra time in the morning to enjoy your breakfast, or walk your dog.
To create a shift between home and school, choose a spot in your house dedicated to schoolwork. It can be your bedroom, your parents’ study, or even the kitchen. Just make sure it’s a quiet, distraction-free room.
Before your first class, pretend you’re leaving for school. Say goodbye to your family and change into “work clothes”. Then, sit at your desk in a comfortable but straight position. Turn your phone off, and stay off social media on your computer as well. Restrict food and drinks to breaks.
Be Proactive
During online lessons, most of the time, your microphone is on mute and your camera is off. Since your teacher doesn’t always see and hear you, it can be easy to get distracted.
To make the most of the lessons and actually learn something, you have to pay attention. Before class make sure you’ve prepared the lesson and done your homework. During the lesson, just listening is not enough. You should also take notes, either on your computer or on paper.
Be reactive and participative. If the teacher allows it, turn on your microphone to answer or ask a question. If not, type what you have to say in the chat. Keep in mind that your teacher is still there to help you, even if classes take place online.
Stay Organized
Without teachers reminding you every day of what you have to do, it’s important to stay organized. To make sure you stay on top of things, use an agenda. Keep track of your upcoming assignments and tests, as well as your progression in each task.
Try to stay informed. Have a look at your school’s online learning platform (Smartschool, Moodle) every day. Also, if your teachers communicate with you by email, check your emails at least once a day. Otherwise, you might miss important information.
Be thorough and follow the teacher’s guidelines. If they ask you specifically to send your assignments by email, or to post them on the school’s platform, it’s important to do as they ask. Try to be punctual with your deadlines as well.
Dedicate a regular number of hours to schoolwork. You should spend at least eight hours a day on classes and homework.
Online classes can be challenging to follow. In order not to get behind, make sure you have a quiet workspace. Participate actively during your lessons and stay organized in your schoolwork and assignments.
Bonus: Keep in touch! You can easily feel isolated when you don’t see your teacher and friends as much. Try to stay in touch with your classmates, and organize a fun activity, like a picnic video call, or an online game. If you want, you can even ask your teacher to join!
Eleonora Badalyan
