With the COVID-19 pandemic in full swing, we’re only beginning to see a glimmer of the hope that it might all be over soon. In the meantime, post-pandemic life goes on as usual, with everyone working, studying, and stuck at home.
For students, this meant challenges they had never faced before, and many found that their teachers were just as unprepared. What has followed in the world of online teaching can best be described as organized chaos, but there are certainly ways to work around it and still achieve academic success.
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In this article, we’re going to talk about some of the things you can do as a student to make online learning a bit easier for yourself!
1. Get Extra Help
Go ahead and check out Lecturio. That’s just one of the many places providing students with top-notch online education in these trying times, and that little extra help can mean the difference between success and failure for many.
These online platforms can help you get the score you want and fill in the gaps in your learning that online school left behind. Sure, you’ll have to invest some extra time and effort into it, but you’re probably doing that already.
2. Stay Punctual
We get the temptation of missing online school, and we get how sometimes it feels like nothing much is usually done in class. That couldn’t be farther from the truth though, and you’ll be surprised by how much of a difference it makes to actually attend class regularly, even if it’s online.
The good thing about online school is that you can have access to recorded lectures, or even attend them in real-time from the comfort of your home even if you’re sick. If you have a tendency to oversleep or miss your alarms, ask someone in the family or one of your roommates to check in on you before class and wake you up if they can.
If you live alone, ask a friend to call you and check in on you. Keep in mind, these things will only work if you actually want to wake up and attend class, but your attendance is crucial to your success.
3. Take Notes
As with regular class, don’t forget to take regular notes you can come back to and study once class is over. Even if you have access to pre-recorded lectures later on, having notes ready will still save you a lot of time while studying and help you get more work done in a shorter amount of time.
That said, putting things in writing can sometimes even help you remember them, which is an added bonus.
4. Know What Works For You
What works for one person doesn’t always work for another, and this isn’t the time to be learning in ineffective ways. Take the time out to find out if you learn better by writing stuff down, by reading it, or by listening to it over and over again.
If you’re a reader, you can just keep going through your notes and textbooks during prep time. Writers may need a long time to learn by writing things down repeatedly, so take that into account when you plan your revision. On the other hand, you can record yourself reading a particular section from your textbooks and notes out loud and play it on repeat if that’s how you learn best.
There are countless audiobooks and online lectures on any given topic available throughout the internet too, and many students can benefit greatly from them.
5. Take Practice Tests
Practice makes perfect, and the more you practice taking an exam, the more accustomed you’ll be to the type of questions you’ll face and finishing the test in the given time. Practice tests are also a great way to revise your course material once you’re done going through it, and help you cement what you’ve already learned in class.
Even if online tests aren’t the best, try and take them honestly, with the same seriousness you’d take regular school tests with.
To be fair, we suggest approaching online school and online classes with the same seriousness you would approach regular school with. It takes a lot of self-discipline and the right attitude, but nothing is impossible if you put your mind to it!