Five Best Ways to Communicate with Fellow Online Students
Posted: March 15, 2021 | Author: Sayre Davis | Read Time: 4 minutes
Communicating with other online students is one of the most difficult parts of attending college online. It may be difficult but being able to communicate effectively with your classmates is one of the most helpful and useful tools you can use. It can allow you to sharpen your writing skills, help you understand the difficulties of math, and can create lifelong friends. To use the great tool of communicating with other students you must be able to stick your neck out and be vulnerable. It takes courage and work but it will pay off to help your studies.
Thousands of apps and services exist to help people communicate with others, below are the five most common ones. As we discuss these five it may be helpful to download them and try them out for yourself.
Zoom
Zoom is one of the most common tools used in online schooling today. It is a downloadable app or website that allows students and professors to communicate with each other through video and chat features. It is a way for professors to broadcast their lecturers to their students and it allows professors to record these broadcasts so that students can access them anytime. Students can also communicate and speak which allows students to ask questions. Open communication is the name of the game with Zoom.
Along with a video call type of interface you can also share your screen, allowing professors to show their work and students to ask more questions. Zoom is common in online schools due to its ease of use and its ability to check on students. Make sure you get familiar with this program, you will see it while taking online classes.
Facebook and Instagram
Most people have a Facebook account and have used Facebook Messenger before. Being familiar is its biggest advantage. The app is very user-friendly which allows it to be a very useful tool in communicating with other classmates. Facebook Messenger can be a means of collaborating on assignments or just chatting with other students. Messenger is less likely to help with assignments, rather create friendships. Friendships can be as useful though.
Instagram is another social media channel that is used to connect with fellow students online. It has a similar feature to Facebook messenger called direct messaging. It can allow you to message people and discuss assignments or school in general. Both of these social media platforms can help students collaborate together.
Google Drive
Google has some of the most helpful tools for online students. From saving photos and documents on the cloud to creating spreadsheets and presentations. For online students, one of the greatest benefits of Google Docs is the ability to store almost any assignment on the cloud. Saving something on the cloud allows you to access it on any computer as long as you sign-in. This allows easy access to assignments from anywhere including your phone. Creating a Google account can help any student, especially since you can submit assignments from your Google Drive.
The best feature for communicating with fellow students is the ability to share and add collaborators to your assignments. Adding collaborators gives whoever you share the document with the ability to edit and make comments. This can allow many eyes to check and offer help on documents. You can also use Google Meets which is like Zoom, in that it allows you to video chat with other users.
Canvas
Canvas will be your main tool used in the online school. Almost every online school will use this program, including Southern Utah University. Canvas is an app or extension that allows professors to put their classes online. They can upload their assignments, syllabus, and even the textbook. It gives you the opportunity to complete assignments and watch the class on any device that connects to the internet. Canvas also has the feature to send messages to your professor as well as any student in your class. This will be your greatest asset in online communication.
Communicating with other students and your professors is an essential asset in your online education. Using these online platforms will give you the upper hand in school.
Produced by SUU Online
Wherever you are in your educational journey SUU can help you reach your goals. SUU's Online programs provide the flexibility you need and the affordability you want. Accelerate your career with the online degree that's right for you.
This article was published more than 3 years ago and might contain outdated information or broken links. As a result, its accuracy cannot be guaranteed.
Tags: Student Life SUU Online
