For many students, online learning is their first taste of true independence. After following the rigid structures of a brick-and-mortar classroom – where time, location, and learning modes are strictly defined – getting to an online school can feel like an open landscape of possibilities.

For some, this is a breath of fresh air, a taste of the freedom they can expect as they slowly develop into adults. For others, leaving the confines of four walls and a pre-determined schedule can feel… overwhelming at first. All of a sudden, they must create their school experience. They are no longer passive “ride-alongs” in someone else’s vision of the academic experience. They are the drivers.

Whatever camp you count yourself in, this article is here to help. At Ontario eSecondary School, we’re invested in making sure you have a fulfilling, academically rich, and emotionally satisfying tenure at our online high school. Therefore, we want to explore some ways to personalize your time here and truly make it your own.

Think of it like taking a trip. Only, instead of your parent or guardian crafting the itinerary, you’re in charge. You decide where to go, how to get there, what to see, and who to travel with. All aboard!

Assess Your Learning Type: VARK and Beyond

The first step in personalizing your high school experience is to perform a quick self-assessment. This shouldn’t take too long or be too challenging. Your answers are also liable to evolve over time, which is also fine.

First, we’d like to introduce you to the VARK model for learning styles. According to the VARK model, learners fall under four broad categories:

• Visual Learners: These students process and absorb information best through visual media like pictures, infographics, videos, and charts.
• Auditory Learners: These students prefer to listen to their information, processing concepts via lectures, taped classes, podcasts, audiobooks, etc. When it comes time to demonstrate their knowledge, these learners may prefer to deliver the information orally.
• Reading/Writing Learners: Traditionally, schools built their curricula around these learners, who prefer to read materials like textbooks, novels, articles, and other written texts. Likewise, they excel at demonstrating their skill through the written word.
• Kinesthetic Learners: These are your “hands-on” learners who need to experience their information in a tactile, immediate way. These students may prefer laboratories, games, activities, sports, etc.

Take a little time to determine where you fall within the VARK model. Remember, you don’t have to be just one type. You can blur the lines between two or more types.

Beyond the VARK model, pedagogical researchers (a fancy way of saying education experts!) have devised other systems of categorization that you may find useful:

• Social vs. Solitary Learners: This dichotomy plots learners on a spectrum between highly social learners who prefer to study and work with others and highly solitary learners who work best away from the potentially distracting presences of peers.
• Competitive vs. Collaborative Learners: Again, this isn’t a binary; it’s a spectrum. Some students feel academically motivated by varyingly intense feelings of competition. Others get the same “wind in their sales” by collaboratively working toward shared goals.
• Avoidant vs. Eager Learners: This categorization describes your relationship with learning, which can change over time (see: Our firm belief in Growth Mindsets). Right now, do you classify yourself as eager to engage with academic work? Or do you feel that you avoid learning situations? If you answered the latter, you can change your attitude by honing a growth mindset.

Remember, none of these designations are fixed! Still, assessing yourself according to these models can help you optimize your education to fit your individual needs.

Next, leverage the multi-media resources offered by leading online schools like OES in correspondence with your learning style. For example, if you’re a visual learner, prioritize your course’s infographics, pictures, and video elements. If you are a social learner, consider joining (or starting) an online study group with peers.

Set Personal SMART Goals

Goals are one of the best ways to tailor your online learning experience. At their best, they are extensions of your values and ambitions – pushing you toward whatever your definition of success might be.

You could opt for a simple, single-statement sticky note pasted to your laptop: “Improve your efforts every day.” However, if you want to create seriously effective goals, try the SMART method. Make your goals:

• Specific: Instead of vague phrases like “improve your efforts,” say something like “Achieve a higher letter grade this term than last term.”
• Measurable: Make sure you can track this goal for progress. “Improving efforts” is too subjective to measure quantitatively. However, you can measure “achieving a higher letter grade” by calculating the weighted marks of each assignment/test you get back to ensure that you’re on track for success.
• Achievable: “I want an A+ in Physics 12” might set you up for disappointment. Set a high bar for goals – but not impossibly high.
• Relevant: This is how you really take charge of personalizing your education. Make your goals relevant to your larger ambitions. If you want to go to med school, for instance, aim for grades aligned with median accepted grade averages for related undergraduate programs.
• Time-Bound: Give yourself a timeframe for achieving this goal. Without a timeframe, you might keep putting it off indefinitely.

These goals will act as a personal road map through your online learning experience, guiding your focus, encouraging your efforts, and keeping you engaged. They will also help with the following…

Talk to an Educational Expert About Your Long-Term Goals

With relevant goals in your back pocket, you can take a bird’s-eye view of your education. What should your education do for you? Should it put you on track for med school? Should it hone the applied skills necessary for a career in the trades? Should it line you up for a successful career as a novelist? Should it foster your entrepreneurial spirit so you can start that Fortune 500 company one day?

Whatever your long-term ambitions, you can tailor your courses to achieve them. Each individual road to success looks a little different. At OES, you can book an academic counselling appointment with one of our education experts to determine which courses to take, how long to allot for completion, and – in general – how to chart a course toward your life’s dreams.

Similarly, for students who need special education programming that incorporates accommodations and modifications, OES is dedicated to offering an Individual Education Plan.

Choose Your Toolkit: Apps, Analog Writing Tools, and Go-To Websites

With the sections above, we got the “big stuff” out of the way. Now, we turn our attention toward personalizing your day-to-day experience at an online high school.

Let’s start with gadgets. Arm yourself with whatever tools you need to thrive in your studies. For some, this toolkit can be a folder of mobile apps like note-taking apps, flashcard apps, distraction-busting apps, and even translators, as well as some go-to research resources online. For others, the toolkit can be a literal toolkit of paper pads, pens, a timer, a calculator, a ruler, etc.

For most, however, a toolkit consists of both analog and digital devices. Whatever it takes for you to feel supported, confident, and in control.

Craft Your Ideal, Flexible Study Schedule

One of the undeniable benefits of online school is its flexibility. There are no set hours. There are no clearly defined study spaces. There is no start date for your courses, and no end date either. Your study schedule is a ball of clay ready to be moulded to your liking.

You might as well take advantage! Craft your ideal study schedule according to a few key considerations:

• When do you work best? Do you feel sharpest at night, in the morning, mid-day? Consider shaping your study schedule around natural periods of concentration.
• What’s your ideal pace? Do you want to blow through the course quickly, or take your time with it? (More on these personalized plans below). Your preferred pace will determine how light or heavy your day-to-day study schedule should be.
• Do you have other commitments? If you participate in extracurricular sports, hobbies, passions, or work, leverage your flexible schedule to work around these commitments. It might take time to strike the right balance, but that’s okay! Flexibility allows you to keep changing until it feels right.
• Any upcoming trips, family obligations, etc.? Likewise, clear time for fun trips and family obligations, diverting that “absent” time somewhere else in the schedule.

By incorporating these considerations in your study planning, you can create a schedule that’s all you – adapted to fit your learning tendencies, goals, passions, and obligations.

If you’re a student who likes to be in charge of their time, chances are you will benefit from online schooling. Read through the resource linked above to learn more.

Customize Your Study Environment for Comfort and Concentration

Another way to put a personal stamp on your online education is to customize your physical space. At a brick-and-mortar school, you must deal with the classroom they give you: the moulded plastic chairs, the tube lighting, the implicit “no eating” rules, etc.

At home, you get to create a classroom in your image. Start with an ergonomic chair that feels comfortable throughout long study sessions; alternatively, opt for a standing desk. Next, clear the space of distractions, and repopulate it with everything you need for a successful study session: your computer, stationery, an apple timer, sticky notes with your SMART goals, blue and white LED lights, aromatherapy candles, water bottle, motivational poster… whatever helps you feel focused, calm, and in control.

As for the “eating policy”? There’s no one else to distract, so you might as well stock up on healthy snacks to fuel your brain throughout the study session! Read more about establishing a study space (wherever you are) in our “strategies for online learning” resource.

Take Things Slow or Pick up the Pace: Education in the Driver’s Seat

Online courses are self-paced, meaning you decide how quickly to complete them. Think of it as a vacation to the countryside. You can burn it down the highway to ensure that you reach your destination as quickly as possible, thereby maximizing your holiday time. Or you can drive slowly, savouring the journey and examining every bit of natural beauty along the way.

Students who choose the fast lane do so for numerous reasons. If you want to fast track your education, you can complete courses in intense, shortened semesters. In so doing, you can graduate sooner and get a head start on applying for college or university. Of course, some students speed through courses because that’s how their brains work best; they feel challenged and engaged by the pace.

Students who prefer the slow lane often cite “good grades” as their primary motivation. By taking their time to deliberate and absorb the course materials, they give themselves a better shot at sticking the landing. Of course – again – some students feel naturally inclined toward a leisurely pace. Back at their brick-and-mortar school, maybe they had difficulties keeping up with the strict classroom pace; for these students, self-paced e-learning feels like a safe environment to flourish.

Take As Much Help as You Need from Teachers, Guidance Experts, and Tutors

Finally, personalize your learning path with some outside help. The paths we take in life aren’t meant to be forged alone, in the dark. They are meant to be well-lit, signposted, and guided by those who came before us.

If you have questions, issues, frustrations, etc., reach out to someone. At OES, our online classes for high school students feature multiple layers of support. Your teachers will be your primary support system, offering help during regular school hours. Alternatively, OES offers 24/7 online tutoring support for students whose frustrations bubble up at night or on the weekends. Finally, you can book an appointment with our educational guidance experts for “big picture” questions and concerns.

As another traditional semester starts, give thought to how you can make this year your own. Personalize your education with the straightforward tips above.