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Time Management Time management is a major concern for all students, whether you are in a physical classroom or working on assignments from home. In all situations, we must carve out some time from our current schedule. Here are some resources on how to manage your time more effectively. We recommend gathering as much advice as you can, then try out some methods out and see what works best for you!
This video has some great tips on how to manage time:
College Survival Tips: Time Management for …
The Pomodoro Technique is a new way of considering time management.
Learn Your Course Requirements In order to set aside the appropriate amount of time for your courses, it is important to know what is expected of you. Read through the Introduction and Getting Started sections of your classroom. The New Student Orientation class gives a good timeline of when you should be turning in Modules and Discussions:
First access - Tuesday
Access the course Read through Module 1 Begin preparing Module 1 discussion and assignment
Initial Discussion Post - Thursday
Additional Discussion Posts - Sunday
Responding to peers
Assignment Submission - Monday
The average rule of thumb for a 3 credit class is that you should be spending about 3.5 hours in the classroom per week, and 10 hours working on the class outside of the classroom per week. This means setting aside 13.5 hours total per week for each class.
Your time can be broken down like this. Each week spend:
3.5 hours - Reviewing course information, discussion posts, writing your own discussion posts, preparing for the next module assignment, and completing readings. Consider this time that you would be spending in a classroom if you went to a physical campus. Your discussion posts are akin to sitting in class and discussing the topic with your peers and instructor.
10 hours - Reading, researching and writing the weekly module assignment.
Make a Schedule The most critical strategy for being successful in an online course is to have a clear plan about how you will manage your time on a weekly basis. Module assignments will be due each week, so this requires that you create a daily schedule for how you will approach the weekly tasks in each module.
Please review the following video for some tips on how to be successful in online classes:
Watch on
Online Students Share Time Managem… Watch later Share
Write down all of your current obligations throughout the week. We know that schedules change, but try to map out the events that stay the same for you week by week. If there are any large gaps of time in your day, those would be perfect for completing your module assignment. Because many of the courses require in-depth research papers for each module, finding a few solid hours to set aside (as opposed to one hour here and one hour there) is an excellent idea.
We recommend accessing your classroom every day, even if it's just for a few minutes. That way you can check on any updated news from your instructor or classmates, as well as answer and respond to the weekly Discussion Questions. Responding to discussion posts on a daily basis will keep you academically active and participating in the course.
Below is an in-depth example of how you could organize your daily schedule to address the module tasks each week.
Tuesday:
Review assignment description for this week; Begin reading the textbook and supplemental resources; Determine additional requirements for assignment (e.g., interviewing individuals, acquiring school-related documents, observing others, etc.); Review the rubric for grading the assignment, if available.
Wednesday:
Brainstorm and create an outline for assignment based on assignment requirements; Identify needed resources; Continue reading the textbook and supplemental resources.
Thursday:
Finish reading textbook and supplemental resources; Start rough draft of assignment based on the outline you created.
Post to the discussion area. Answer the discussion question.
Friday:
Continue writing; Support your claims with references, as needed.
Saturday:
Finish rough draft; Check to make sure assignment addresses ALL the components of the assignment description; Compare your draft to the criteria in the assignment rubric, if available.
Sunday:
Start final draft; Edit and revise rough draft; Polish ideas and focus on organization, flow, and transition of ideas; Strengthen support for your ideas by providing solid citations.
Post for a second time to discussion.
Monday:
Review final draft; Focus on mechanics, APA formatting details, spelling, grammar, etc.; Double-check that the assignment addresses ALL the components required of the assignment description; Submit assignment to the instructor.
Once you have created a schedule for yourself that suits your needs, write it down in a planner, on a calendar, note-card, in a computer, phone - whatever system works best for you.
Schedule Down-time
Over-exertion can result in abandoning your entire program. Make sure to schedule some time for yourself. This could be doing an activity that you enjoy, exercising, or relaxing. These activities are very important and will help decrease your level of stress as you complete your assignments. One method is to reward yourself with something you enjoy after you have completed your assignment.
If you are concerned that you do not have enough time for everything, you may want to re-assess your course load. It is always safer to start your program with fewer courses, and then slowly add more when you understand what is expected.
Weekly Planner In the following Weekly Planner, fill-in “A, B, C, D” to indicate chunks of time for each category. Start with identifying the hours of time needed for A, B, and C. Then, whatever slots are left become opportunities for studying for your Aspen classes. Mark the chunks of time for studying with a D and stick to this weekly schedule consistently every day. Instead of letters, you might decide to color-code your schedule for each of the A-D categories. The point is to stick to your schedule for the D time slots (i.e., studying).
A = Work/Job/Commute B = Sleep C = Appointments/Other Obligations D = Study time
Time Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday Saturday Sunday 6-7am 7-8am 8-9am 9-10am 10-11am 11am- 12pm
12-1pm 1-2pm 2-3pm 3-4pm 4-5pm 5-6pm 6-7pm 7-8pm 8-9pm 9-10pm 10-11pm 11pm- 12am