Anybody Out There? Connecting with your fellow online learners

Do you feel all alone as you work through your course? Do you long for some interaction? There are several places you can go to connect with your fellow learners.

If you having problems with your classroom or course materials, your best support will be your instructor. You can post a message to the Question and Comments forum in your classroom to let your instructor know you are having problems. This is the best way since your instructor is sure to see it the next time he or she logs in.

If you want to communicate just with the instructor, you can click on the link for Participants to see a list of participants, including your instructor. Click on your instructor's name. Below your instructor's profile is a button that says "Send message". This will send a message just to your instructor that will be displayed the next time he or she logs in. Their reply will also be in a message you will see the next time you log in.

If you want to bypass the classroom communication completely, you can click on the link for your instructor's email address to send him or her an email. Be aware that the email may not be read if it ends up in your instructor's spam folder.

If you want a more synchronous communication, contact your instructor and schedule a time to chat. Most classrooms have a link to a chat where class members can meet to discuss the course materials or just get to know one another.

Still feeling alone? Try posting a message to the student lounge to strike up a conversation with your fellow online learners or check the Online Users list in your classroom, at the main classroom screen or in the student lounge to see who else is online. Our learners are from all over the world so you never know who you might meet.

posted by Classroom Manager @ 10:40 PM