A Few Tips for Staying Engaged in Online Courses

Have you ever been reading and your mind wander?  Have you read the same sentence a few times without knowing what it said?  Has your mind ever drifted when in conversation with someone?  If you answered yes, then you are normal.  We all lose focus and attention during tasks.  The risk is even greater when the person talking to us isn't in a face-to-face conversation.  Taking active steps to stay engaged will be even more important with online learning to prevent losing focus.

Online classes provide a different learning environment.  Whether you have the autonomy to complete the course at your own pace or you participate in video conference (zoom, teams, etc.) classes, staying engaged will be critical to retaining information.  I provided a few tips below for staying engaged while participating in different styles of classes.

Zoom, Teams, etc.

1.  Turn your video on if possible.  Some professors require this.  The video creates accountability because the professor can see whether you are playing on your phone, watching TV, or at least nominally listening to the lecture.

2.  Take notes in a notebook instead of your computer.  Many students take notes on computer while in class.  However, your laptop is now the medium for instruction.  Decreasing the screen size or minimizing it will effect what you see and learn.  Handwritten notes adds the benefit of retyping notes into outline format, which improves retention.

3.  Fully brief cases and print out the briefs.  Students migrate to book briefing as soon as they feel comfortable, but I don't think that is the best strategy in general.  The printed out case brief is a good place to then take class notes, including highlighting important information and adding in the professor discussion.  One benefit of this strategy is both reading and class discussion information is in 1 place.

4.  Volunteer to answer questions.  Volunteering is more engaging than passively listening to class.

5.  Answer hypos and questions on your paper or in your head.  The last 2 pieces of advice aren't unique to zoom, but the online environment is easier for mind wandering.  Answering every question will prevent losing focus.

6.  Use the chat function to ask questions.  This is another engagement tool, and you don't need to speak in class.

Pre-Recorded Lectures

1.  Fully brief cases and print out briefs.  Similar advice to above.  Pre-recorded classes are even easier to lose focus, so any tool that helps is important.

2.  Pause the video at a reasonable break if you mind wanders.  Get a drink, snack, or anything else that will improve focus.

3.  Plan when to complete the work.  Asynchronous (online autonomous) courses are difficult because you have the autonomy to complete the work on your schedule.  If you don't create a plan for when to complete the work, you will get behind.  Catching up is hard, so create a daily, weekly, and monthly schedule for your work.

4.  Complete activities or questions as if you are in class.  Yes, the lecture is pre-recorded, and yes, the professor will give the answer after a short pause.  However, don't let that lull you into not working on each practice problem.  Treat each activity as an opportunity to engage the class.

 

The online environment will take adjustment, but you can learn as much in this environment as a regular class.  The learning may be difficult.  However, deliberate actions during each meeting or recording can actively engage in the process.  The engagement will lead to the long-term learning needed for success.

(Steven Foster)