Online nursing education has opened many doors for students and faculty to work and learn at any time. Speaking as a student and a faculty member, I can say that both face similar obstacles and advantages.
Advantages and Disadvantages
First, online nursing classes allow students to complete the assignments at almost any time. This is especially helpful if you do not live near an institution that offers the courses you want. It is also convenient for individuals who cannot take attend classes at specific times due to their schedule. The ability to learn when the student has the time is probably the biggest advantage of online learning.
However, if you are considering taking up an online nursing program, you should also think about your commitment to learning. As a student, you must be willing to take total responsibility for your learning. There is no one who will prod you along when you do not complete the assignments on time or post in the discussion sections on a scheduled basis.
Adjusting to the Online Environment
Your peers are an important resource as you navigate through the course, so you need to be willing to share your knowledge. At the same time, you should ask for help from them when you need it. After all, an instructor may not respond as fast as you might like to problems you encounter during the course. So you must learn to be patient or find other resources to assist you, such as your peers.
The first course you take should be one that is not difficult. Use it as a way to learn how to navigate through the course materials. After all, knowing where you have to go in the course materials is something that is very important to learn. There is nothing more discouraging than missing something you are required to do simply because you did not see it.
I would also suggest that you only take one course at first. Only consider taking more than one later, when you’ve gotten the hang of online nursing education. Even then, you should consider your other obligations in life. It’s amazing how much time two courses can take.
Tips for Faculty
For faculty thinking about teaching online, you will face many of the same issues that students have when it comes to navigating a course. Since there are no face to face interactions, written communication becomes very important.
Many first-time online students are discouraged by problems in navigating the site and other computer issues. This pushes them to drop the course or they end up not enrolling for other online courses. That’s why faculty must encourage students to ask for help as soon as they need it, whether from a help desk or the faculty member. Faculty members need to go to all areas of the course to make sure they do not miss a student asking a question or needing assistance in some way.
However, faculty members must remember they are only facilitators. They must not spoon-feed students the material to be studied.
Many courses also utilize synchronized seminars as a teaching tool. They allow students and faculty to communicate about a particular topic in real-time. However, technical issues can happen. Therefore, adequate planning must be done to minimize problems and everyone has to be patient to work through them.