We all have something we’re good at. Whether it’s writing long papers without straying from the topic, or arguing a point without losing your position, this is what you would call your niche. Having something you can consider yourself an expert in is something worth bragging about and building upon.

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For some, mulitasking inhibits them from completing one task entirely. It can also make learning less effective. According to a study in the Journal of Experimental Psychology: Human Perception and Performance, participants lost significant amounts of time as they switched between mulitple tasks and lost even more time as the tasks became increasingly complex. This study revealed that if a student switches from one activity to another they will learn more slowly and become less efficient and make more errors.

To avoid the dangers of multitasking, shut down the e-mail, social networking sites and Internet games to focus your attention on the task in front of you and continue to work for a predetermined amount of time.

(source: About.com)

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Don’t let yourself get burned out on the information you’re taking in for class. Yes, some of the content in your textbooks may be dull or hard to read, but giving up won’t help and getting frustrated can bring you to procrastinating. Instead try changing how you approach the reading or assignment.

If you have kids, do you find new and interesting ways to teach them things? If so, it’s not too far off from that concept. Just like your kids, they get bored easily if they don’t understand something, or it doesn’t catch their attention. Put yourself in their shoes and you may have a better chance of taking in the new information faster. Instead of highlighting text in your book, take a minute to grab a few of the key concepts in that chapter. Make a story using them, or create a few doodles that depict the information. This can turn into your study tools later when it comes time to taking a test. Or if you want to try a more adult alternative to keeping information interesting, try adding humor to the text in a way that’s relevant to the material.

Many online learners don’t realize they are not alone out there! Did you know that over four million people have taken classes online in the past year? Take advantage of this growing trend and find another person who is new to online learning and is taking classes as well.

You can form a study group, figure out technology problems and just provide a virtual shoulder to cry on if your partner is discouraged or frustrated. Your study partner doesn’t even have to been in the same program, class or school. You can simply form a group of folks that creates their own “study hall” each week to share ideas, tips, encouragement and discussions, so that you have more interaction than just the online classroom. Setting aside a couple hours a week in a quiet place is all you need. In fact, someone can volunteer to bring snacks each week and you can rotate.

- Online Learning Tips Staff

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