The internet has revolutionized how we obtain knowledge. The traditional classroom setting has been moved to an online forum where knowledge is easily disseminated to students who receive instruction remotely while they also embark in challenging self-directed learning while engaging with peers and professors in online platforms.
The traditional skill set that attributed to student success in campus classrooms, will also support scholar achievement in online classrooms. Students that accomplish academic goals are curious, motivated, effective communicators, use their time to accomplish tasks that lead to their academic success, and they are habitual about their behavior as to achieve a goal. The skill level to achieve the goal of academic success fluctuates based on the learning platform’s environment the student is engaging with. Online student’s skill sets need to be mastery to complete courses online.
Whether students choose the face to face setting to obtain their academics or the online forum being curious is one key to be a successful student. The online forum for learning is largely self-managed without peer influence. Online learners often must explore topics by themselves, curious students investigate deeper than non-engaged learners, and online students will be self-directing this investigation. Online learners initially discern the value of the information they attain by themselves. On campus learners working together can consult immediately with other peers about the value of information. The peer to peer engagement is essential to learning online and on campus.
The influence of direct peer interaction aids on campus students to stay motivated in their search for knowledge. Online learners lack the direct human contact and must be self-motivate and reach out to others through technology. This requires online students to be exceptionally effective written communicators. The on-campus student utilizes different forms of communication that makes communication easier to be directly and clearly understood. Communication and peer to peer learning is almost instantaneous when peers are face to face. Online students communicate primarily through written communication.
Communication from device to device lacks the large amount of actual communication that humans perceive through body language. The online learner must stay motivated to read communications between peers, professors, course work, and other writings to find the intended meaning to the syntax, and key concepts within the words. This can be time consuming and tedious. The student must also deliver written communication that clearly gives the reader the students intent of the communication. This also can be tedious and time consuming. The online student must manage time skillfully.
Student’s time management skills are essential on campus or online. On campus students must juggle other obligations, and there academics just as online students. On campus students though attend oral instruction from their professors. The professors cue the on-campus student to key components in a lesson. Online students are given course work to read, learning activities through written directives the online student is often left to identify the key concepts in the assignments largely by themselves. After discovering the concepts, the online student will then have to deliver a written assignment showing the student’s mastery of concepts, and peer critique others mastery of concepts, and engage in peer critiquing of their written assignment. This process is extensive, it requires, habitual behavior that assures the online student does not fall behind.
If the online student has not advanced from novice to master of skills identified for student success, it will be difficult even in entry level courses to maintain. The on-campus student can enter entry level courses a novice at the skills presented above and succeed with the benefit of peer and professor direct contact. Thus the on campus student could master the skills and become a successful online student.