<p>Hey everyone I think im going to take an online class soon and was wondering would you recommend them? I'm going to take a communications class which seems pretty reasonable to take unlike calculus online etc. But for those of you who have experiences taking them, do we have a certain date that we take an exam? if so, are we given up to 24 hours to take the test in a day? I guess if im correct so far, we are given about an hour limit to take em?</p>
<p>Any other info, tips, experiences would greatly be appreciated thanks alot</p>
<p>For homework, there are usually deadlines by which the homework has to be turned it (e.g. 11pm on Tuesday). For exams, there is also a deadline, but from my experience, you usually get a few days before the deadline to take the exam. And the amount of time you have for each exam really depends on the professor too. Additionally, some instructors require you to post on the online discussion board for “participation” points and stuff like that. </p>
<p>Pros -
Stay at home
Work whenever you want
Procrastinate</p>
<p>Cons -
Strict deadlines
No face-to-face instruction
Procrastinate</p>
<p>CC online classes are pretty straight forward and are run just like how @Koreo stated. </p>
<p>The only tip that I have is that use your book no matter what for the quizzes and exams because online tests are usually worded similarly, and are usually tougher than in-class tests. </p>
<p>Take advantage of the facts that everything is open book!</p>
<p>Online courses can be kind of a crapshoot. I took one where the instructor (full-time faculty member with a PhD - at a CCC!) was totally on top of the discussion area and had very structured assignments and exams (yes, you get a period of time the exam is open, usually a few days to a week). I am currently finishing up another where the instructor takes weeks to grade the assignments, takes three days to a week to respond to questions in the discussion area, and the assignments are pretty much a joke. The midterm exam had a 2-hour time limit (after you started it) and I finished it in 9 minutes.</p>
<p>In the first class there was a significant amount of discussion and the other students were involved and interesting. In the current class, I posted a topic asking if anyone was interested in doing a study group through the built-in chat function. Nobody replied to that post (or posted anything else anywhere on the board) for three weeks. Total deadbeats, not a rewarding class experience, only worth it for the structure and deadlines (vs. just studying on my own and challenging for credit by exam).</p>
<p>I took 50 units of my 60 online. I even took Statistics online!</p>
<p>You have to be extremely motivated. I am a single mom and it was the most efficient route for me because I could do everything on MY time and I was extremely motivated to succeed so I did well.</p>
<p>On the learning aspect- it is mostly self-taught so if you can hold yourself to teaching yourself the material a couple of days a week then do it. </p>
<p>I will say this- after going to CCC online for 2 years and being in an actual classroom this semester, I have RETAINED so much more information, which I feel is important in some classes and not so important in others.</p>
<p>Are there any classes that the UCs and privates don’t want you taking online? I feel like I read somewhere that they discourage you from taking language courses online, but I’m not sure.</p>
<p>They don’t show up as on-line in your transcript so they will never know. Now as for language, if you are taking a foreign language finding a class will be difficult since it’s kind of hard to demonstrate a working knowledge of how to speak something over on-line formats.</p>
<p>I took Spanish I online at West Los Angeles College. I was going to take Spanish II online but decided to take it in person because I barely got a B in Spanish I.
We had to partner up for every section and use a microphone to record the communication parts of Vistas and then submit them.</p>
<p>I have taken several online classes through my CC and they are usually structured the same: each week we do discussion board which counts as participation points, reading assignments, quizzes and tests. As long as the teacher stays on top of things I have enjoyed the convenience of an online class. Stay on top of deadlines, I got mixed up in an anthropology class that had several assignments due one week, all on different days and missed the deadline.
Don’t be afraid to email the instructor as needed also, they can really help clear up any misunderstanding and explain an assignment you don’t understand. I’d say go for it, its a very convenient option and as long as you can stay motivated you should do fine.</p>