January 2007

The Key to Success in Online Courses

Columbia High School, Marian Udelhofen, Instructional Aide

From the very first, when Columbia High School started offering online courses via the DLC, staff created an online class period.

"Everyone felt strongly that the key to success was to have a period built into the schedule, and I think this has been confirmed over and over again by our student success rate," says Marian Udelhofen, an instructional aide at Columbia who also serves as DLC registrar and site coordinator.

Columbia High School, in the White Salmon School District, has expanded its course offerings through the DLC.

Online class period supports success

With online classes, the first four weeks are critical—and set the stage for success. Students are not only learning new subject matter but also learning to navigate through the course's online platform.

"I think students go into the online experience thinking it's going to be a breeze but initially feel overwhelmed by it all instead, and I think it really helps having somebody there to assist them and help them establish good online class practices," Udelhofen says. "Once they're set in the right direction, I find that most kids run with it."

Udelhofen also regularly communicates with the students' online instructors to let them know when a student has been absent or if something is going on in the student's life that may be affecting his or her work. "It gives the online teachers a tremendous insight into what is going on, because they're not on site; they don't see the absences or hear the excuses, which often are valid," Udelhofen explains. "I don't think high school students have learned to be great advocates for themselves yet."

Udelhofen also reminds students that they need to relay that information to their teachers themselves. "I think that without my emphasizing the importance of communicating details, students have a tendency to just assume the teacher knows everything."

Students follow their passions

Students generally have to have fifth period available in order to register for an online class. When students ask about online classes, Udelhofen first gives them what she calls her heart-to-heart speech: "You need to be self-motivated, willing to take responsibility for your learning, and have good time-management skills or it's an expensive lesson to learn you're not.”

"I think this is part of the whole online process that is so great for kids to experience, to really take responsibility for their own learning and class management…I emphasize things like that, not to scare them away, but almost," she says, laughing. Udelhofen also checks in with a few of the student's teachers and the counselor, and if all of that indicates that a student is a good candidate, he or she is eligible to sign up for an online class.

Students at Columbia usually register for electives. "It's almost always a passion for something we don't offer here, since we're a small school…Psychology, animal zoology, careers in motion…everything under the sun. And that really surprised me, how broad the spectrum is. But it always comes down to a personal passion that the kids want to pursue."

Udelhofen believes that these electives give students a foundation to build on once they get to college and that students benefit from all the skills they learn in the online environment. "It's really just a double-positive experience…I think online learning is worth the investment."

"What's really exciting is giving kids an opportunity to take something that they wouldn't have otherwise had an opportunity to take. I'm so happy to be a part of that."

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