Unit 1 C STUDY SKILLS: LEARNING AT A DISTANCE


No matter what method is used to deliver distance learning (correspondence, TV, radio or the internet), courses of this type have a far higher dropout rate than courses in which people have face-to-face contact with a teacher, tutor or lecturer. The main challenges students face, and often fail to overcome, are maintaining motivation and managing their time.


1


Read the tips from two students who successfully completed online distance learning courses. Answer the questions.


a Which tips relate to motivating oneself and which to managing one’s time? b Which tips do you think you would find useful? c Are any of these tips also useful for other situations, such as doing homework for class? d Can you think of other ideas to motivate yourself and manage your time when learning at home?


1 Choose a course that offers interactive monitoring of your progress – for example, an email is automatically sent to you when you haven’t completed a section in a given amount of time. That really helped me.


C21 skills


5 My course included some contact with a tutor by email and video calling. Being able to ask questions and get some feedback really kept me going when my enthusiasm was fading.


2 Take a course with a friend – friendly competition helps you keep to the programme.


6 I studied in blocks of an hour at a time and promised myself a small reward at the end of that hour.


3 Set aside a specific time each day or each week that you will spend doing the course. Don’t alter this for any reason!


4 Ask your friends or family to choose a special treat that you will all share when you have finished the whole course. We spent a day at an indoor rock- climbing centre together, but it could be something like a weekend away in a new place if that’s more your kind of thing.


7 Make sure your friends and family understand that you must spend a certain amount of time every week on the programme and that they can’t expect you to give that up.


8 Because I was online doing my coursework, I got really easily distracted and found myself checking my email or social media accounts when I was meant to be studying. You can install software that blocks sites like that for a certain period of time. I found that really useful.


24


English for the 21st


Century • Unit 1


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