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Snead State 
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Top 10 issues to Consider Before Taking Online Courses Snead State Community College offers the largest e-Learning program of any two-year college in the state. Online courses are popular choices for students because of the flexibility and convenience they provide. However, before enrolling in an online class, students should consider 10 issues that could affect their success. 1. Ease of Use - SSCC uses Blackboard as its platform for online courses. Some courses also make use of video-streaming technology. The ease of using these courses depends greatly on how up-to-date students’ computers are and how well students know how to use the computers. Students can succeed in online courses if they have limited knowledge of computer use and if they have dial-up Internet connection; however, they must show patience and endurance as they will have to spend a good deal of time getting their system to work properly. Even if students have new computers yet do not know how to use them, they can expect some technical difficulty. SSCC uses state-of-the-art servers for housing online courses; however, access problems do arise occasionally. When problems arise, the SSCC Information Technology department informs instructors, who have traditionally altered their deadlines to compensate for any down time. 2. Student-Teacher Interaction - SSCC requires online instructors to interact with online students at least five days per week either through e-mail, assignments and tests, chat, discussion boards, or other methods they choose. Students who want or need immediate feedback are often frustrated with online courses. Students who are self-directed and do not need a lot of personal interaction with the instructor have more success with online courses. Some students need or prefer face-to-face instruction. 3. Time Management - Students sometimes take online courses, thinking they will have to spend less time with the course than they would in on-campus classes. The opposite is true. Online courses require more time (sometimes significantly more time) than on-campus courses. The vast majority of students who struggle in online classes do so because they are unable to spend as much time online as they need. 4. Computer Accessibility - There are students who succeed in online courses without owning a personal computer; however, complications habitually arise when a lab is closed or a friend is out of town on test day. The majority of students who succeed own fairly updated computers and know how to use them. 5. Technical Support - SSCC has a full-time person, Ms. Jerri Gullion jgullion@snead.edu (256-840-4180), to help students and faculty members with technical issues concerning Blackboard and streaming video. Though she is not a support person for computer hardware or other software products, she does have some general knowledge of computer systems and oftentimes can help students who are having technical difficulty. 6. Basic Computer Skills - Students who know how to make adjustments to their Windows and Internet browser settings and who are generally comfortable with using computers have the best success rate. Microsoft Word is the accepted word processing program for Snead State. Familiarity with Word and other Microsoft Office products helps insure student success. 7. Self-Discipline and Motivation - Online courses require a great deal of independent learning and personal responsibility. Students who do not succeed tend to get behind and miss deadlines. When students allow assignments to stack up, their task becomes overwhelming. The most successful students are those who keep a daily check on their courses and have the self-discipline to complete all assignments in a timely manner. 8. Clearly Stated Requirements - The most successful online students are
those who have discovered what will be required of them prior to registering for
online classes. Potential online students can go to the SSCC e-Learning web page
http://www.snead.edu/distancelearning/ 9. Convenience and Flexibility - The No. 1 reason students give for taking online courses is convenience. Students with busy lives need the flexibility that online courses provide; however, SSCC’s online courses are not self-paced. They require that students follow a timeline as they progress through each course. One goal of distance-Learning course designers is to create courses that closely match their on-campus counterparts. Students must be mindful that there will be regular assignments and deadlines with online courses. 10. Reading Ability - Online courses depend on students being willing and able to read texts. Assignments, tests, e-mails, discussion boards, and chat rooms require students to read. There is a direct correlation between students’ reading comprehension and success in online courses. Though RDG 085 is not a required course for any major, students who have trouble with reading comprehension and critical thinking and test-taking skills might do well to consider taking the course before jumping into online instruction. Students who score less than 70 on the reading portion of the COMPASS exam should consider that they will have to spend more time and effort than usual in order to comprehend material and succeed in online courses. There are other factors beyond these top ten that affect student success. Learning styles and preferences, misperception of course difficulty level, lack of personal contact, prior knowledge, course design, and other factors affect success and should be considered, but students who review these top ten factors before they decide whether or not online learning is for them will save themselves some headaches and heartaches by knowing what is needed for online student success. |
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