Author: Strawberry with Chocolate

Goals and Distractions

This semester I want to keep my grades up, that is my goal. Last semester I did well, and I hope to keep that up. I hope to do better and get a higher GPA than last semester, but I don’t know if that will be possible. I think if I keep pushing myself like last semester, I will do well. But last semester was different for me, I had mostly online classes and it was easier for me to get my work done. This semester I have all in-person classes, and everything is due by the next class most of the time which is a bit more challenging as I have more classes that are like this and other activities outside of class which makes it difficult as well to get my assignments done every once in a while.

As the end of the semester approaches, I find myself wanting to do schoolwork less and less as well. I would rather hang out with my friends or watch something on Netflix and play Candy Crush. I find myself struggling in two of my classes, not in the sense that I’m not doing my work but that I’m not doing my work well enough because I don’t understand the material that well. I don’t give myself enough time to do some of my classes, I focus on only a few and do the others when I have time and I think that will be my greatest opponent as the semester progresses. I think I need to regulate the time I spend with my friends and the time I spend on each class to be successful in my schoolwork but I don’t have the heart to say “no” to my friends all the time but I think it is necessary in order for me to achieve my goals.

This Photo by Unknown Author is licensed under CC BY-SA

The Benefits and Struggles of Online Classes

There are many pros to online classes. For instance, you can learn and read things at your own pace. Online classes give students more time to do assignments and a bit more leeway with their learning, which for some students is more helpful. Another pro is that students cannot be late to online classes, unless they have zoom meets, and there is no reason for students not to do their assignments in a timely manner as they typically have at least one week to do them. Online students can also range from on campus students to parents who decided to come back to school for a higher education.

There are also many cons to online classes. For instance, students can cheat on assignments and not learn anything from the course. Students can also get easily confused on material and it is a struggle for them to get help as online students as professors may not check their emails or get back to the students on time leaving the students completely confused and alone. Online students tend to lack social interaction and connections with other students and professors as they tend to do their schoolwork in their dorms or areas on campus by themselves leaving them lonely and without a sense of connection or society. Another con is that students can become unmotivated if they only have online classes and rot in their dorm rooms and work on their schoolwork all day and night, they will slowly but surely give up on school and either drop out or go on academic probation. Online courses also do not limit distractions; students can do whatever they like such as watching shows and movies or scrolling through social media, doing anything but their schoolwork, which is concerning.