What pitfalls do you see your online students falling into and how do you help them "get out of the pit"? 1. Lack communication skills 2. Lack initiative 3. Assume online learning is easy 4. Procrastinate The pitfalls listed above are the more common ones I seem to see in my class. Lack of communication skills is definitely at the top of my list. It is almost like some students enroll for school then forget they did. I send them email after email without a single response in return. Depending on the school’s policy, phone calls may be included in the communication attempts as well. The best way to “get them out of the pit” is to get more people involved in my opinion. With a strong at-risk procedure the student’s online advocate or student success team can get involved as well. Unfortunately, there are just some students that cannot “be found.” Lack of initiative can be very frustrating as an online instructor. I feel this ties in with the assumption that online learning is easy. To be successful in an online environment these students need effective time management strategies and motivation. I feel the key is finding what motivates that student. For some it is extrinsic like grades and for others the motivation needs to come from within. Keeping the students motivated may help them take their education into their own hands and complete the tasks at hand. Then there is procrastination. I have lost count of the amount of students that wait until last minute to submit their work. It never fails that there is someone that had something come up on the last day of a class, they don’t submit their work before the course closes, and this leads to them failing the class. For me it goes back to time management. If you have a week to complete an assignment, don’t wait until the 11th hour. Too help combat the last three pitfalls I really try to motivate my students and give them tools they can use within and outside the classroom. Effective time management strategies are vital in school and within their field of study. Having a realistic, effective schedule will allow them to keep their life in balance.