success


1. Read How to be a Successful Online Student 

 

2. Many students believe online classes are easier or take less time than a face to face class. Both beliefs are wrong. Because online classes have the same requirements as traditional classes, the amount and time spent on the class should be the same, or may in fact take longer (from Pierce College)

 

3. Each unit of lecture is equal to 18 hours of “seat time” in a normal classroom.  Each unit of lecture should be accompanied by an additional 2 hours of study time.  If a 3 unit lecture class is taught in 18 weeks, it would require 3 hours per week of “seat time.”  If that same class were taken during a 5-week Summer or Winter term, it would require 10.4 hours per week plus the additional 21 hours of study time or a total of 31.4 hours per week, or 4 hours per day per week.  These are good rules for scheduling yourself to work on classes you take online.  (from LA Trade Tech)

 

4. You are expected to read everything on the class home page and follow the links and directions on it.

 

5. You are expected to drop any online class you do not want to complete.  Do not rely upon the instructor dropping you for lack of participation or attendance. You are expected to log into the virtual classroom each week as needed to read new announcements from the instructor, read assignments, and submit work on time.  In classes that are short-term, you should log in daily.  In the event you have technical problems, you are expected to locate another computer to continue logging into the virtual classroom.  If work is lost on a home computer, you need to contact the instructor to discuss the issue.  Thus, a printed copy of the course syllabus and other pertinent information should be kept for emergency situations when technical difficulties develop.

 

6. You can expect to have your instructor respond to your email questions and phone calls within a couple of days.  If you do not get a response, try again.  When leaving a phone message, speak slowly and give your name, class and phone number twice at the beginning of your phone call.  If you can’t reach your instructor within 3 days, you can contact Prof. J, the Director of the Paralegal Studies Program at (cell) 818-415-2015 or email: abogado@pacbell.net

 

7.  Don’t assume your first email or phone call reached your instructor and was read by him or her.  If you don’t get a response, contact your instructor again and politely ask for assistance.  Give at least 24-48 hours for your instructor to respond.  He/she will probably be receiving hundreds of emails and calls each week.  He/she is trying to help everyone, but sometimes that task is impossible.  Therefore, be understanding and continue to try to reach him/her in multiple ways to get the help you need. (from LA Trade Tech)

 

Learning Style

The best way to learn depends on a person.  Recognizing and understanding one's learning style can help improve the quality of learning.  Several studies have developed different categories of learning styles. Below is a learning style model developed and used by North Carolina State University.  The model assesses four dimensions (active/ reflective, sensing/ intuitive, visual/ verbal, and sequential/ global) of learning styles.

 

 
LEARNING
STYLES
 
CHARACTERISTICS
 
STRATEGIES
 
 
 
 

 

 

Active Learners
 
vs.
 
Reflective Learners
Active Learners
  • Active learners learn by doing something active - discussion, application, or teaching materials to others. 
  • Like to do group work. 
  • Sitting through lectures without any activity but taking notes is hard.
  • If class does not allow for discussion, study in a group where members take turns explaining different topics to each other. 
  • Work with others to study for exams.
Reflective Learners
  • Reflective learners prefer to think about course materials first before discussing the information.  
  • Like to work alone. 
  • Study by stopping periodically and review/ think what you have read.
  • Think of possible questions or applications.
  • Summarize readings or class notes in own words. 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Sensing Learners
 
vs.
 
Intuitive Learners
Sensing Learners 
  • Sensing learners like to learn facts.
  • Prefer to solve problems by using well-established methods and dislikes complications and surprises. Do not like to be tested on materials not explicitly covered in class.
  • Patient with details and good at memorization of facts and doing hands on work. 
  • Practical and careful.
  • Do not like courses that have no connection to the real world.
  • If class material is abstract and theoretical, ask questions and specific examples of concepts and procedures.
  • Find out how concepts apply to the real world - ask instructor, look at references, or brainstorm with classmates.  
Intuitive Learners 
  • Intuitive learners prefer to discover possibilities and relationships.
  • Like innovations BUT not repetition. 
  • Can grasp new concepts and are comfortable with abstractions and mathematical formulations.
  • Innovative.
  • Do not like courses that involve a lot of memorization and routine classes.
  • If in a class that deals primarily with memorization, may have trouble with boredom - ask instructor for interpretations or theories that link the facts, or try to find the connections yourself.
  • May also be prone to careless mistakes on test because you are impatient with details and do not like repetition (as in checking your completed solutions) - take time to read the entire question before you start answering and check your results.
 
 
 
 
 
 

 

 

 
 
 
Visual Learners
 
vs.
 
Verbal Learners
 
Visual Learners 
  • Visual learners learn by seeing images, diagrams, flow charts, timelines, and demonstrations. 
  • Find images, diagrams, sketches, schematics, photographs, flow charts or any visual representation of the course materials.
  • If cannot find any visual materials, prepare own flowcharts, concept maps or any visual representation.
  • Color-code notes with highlighter so that everything relating to one concept is the same color. 
Verbal Learners
  • Verbal learners prefer the use of words - written and spoken explanations. 
  • Write summaries or outlines of course materials in own words.
  • Work in groups - take turns explaining different topics to each other. 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Sequential Learners
 
vs.
 
Global Learners
Sequential Learners 
  • Sequential learners gain understanding in linear steps, with each step following logically from the previous step.
  • Prefer to follow logical stepwise paths in finding solutions. 
  • If in a class where instructor jump from topic to topic or skips steps, ask instructor to fill in the skipped steps or fill  them in by consulting references.
  • Create outlines of the material in logical order. 
Global Learners 
  • Global learners tend to learn in large larges - absorbing the materials without seeing the connections BUT eventually seeing the complete picture.
  • May solve complex problems quickly or put thing together once they have the big picture.
  • Realize that you need the big picture of the material before you can master the material.
  • Skim through the course materials/ text to get an overview of the material. 
  • Instead of spending short time on every subject every night, study one subject for large blocks of time.
  • Ask instructor to help you see connections.
 
 

Proper Web Etiquettes

  1. Do NOT send or post materials to anyone in the class that you would not be comfortable saying to that person.  This includes use of inappropriate words, jokes, and images. 
  2. ALWAYS proof-read materials that will be posted or sent for errors.
  3. Do not use the communication tools for personal matters.  For example, do not use for promoting social causes, selling materials, etc.
  4. Provide instructors and educators time to respond to postings (24-48 hours).
  5. Do not communicate just to communicate.  Any communication must advance the discussion. Posting "I Agree" to another student's comment does not add to the discussion.
  6. Think before you speak/ write.
  7. Try not to be the last person to post to the class discussion forums. Instructors are able to determine who contributed most and least to a project/ assignment.

Is Online Right for Me?

To find out if online learning is a good fit for your learning style, please take a few minutes to complete the student skills and technical skills quizzes below. These short quizzes will provide you with valuable feedback on whether online learning is right for you!

Online Learning Success - See  Lessons (from Valley) - http://www.lavc.edu/virtualvalley/ols/Welcome_Main_Menu.html - note: disregard any reference to Etudes course platform. We use the Moodle Course platform in our Paralegal Studies Program at Mission