I've learned that I should start my eLearning students off with an online learning readiness survey. Many of them have never taken an online course before, and are unaware of their strengths and weakness as they relate to their ability to succeed in an online environment. The survey feedbck should also give students techniquies to improve areas of weakness. I believe the most common of these weaknesses for students that I will be dealing with is time management.
In addition to helping students become self-aware of potential obstacles to their success (and giving them strategies they can implement), I believe it is important for the instructor to build in many of these strategies with the assumption that some students may be unable or unwilling to implement them themselves. A good online class will lay out all the assignments upfront, their due dates, and help students set up reminders in their calendar. The instructor will break down larger assignments into smaller, more manageable sections, and give individual due dates with some form of instructor/student communication tied to them. The instructor will also assist students in developing a study plan to schedule out blocks of time they can commit to working on their course. Based on this plan, the instructor will help the student set daily or weekly goals to help students easily determine if they are on the path to success, or falling behind.
