If you want to become an independent student, you first have to understand what it means. An independent student is one who has the ability to do everything that a regular student can do, except they do not have their parents paying for their education. This means that they have to be able to afford tuition and living expenses without any help from their parents.
Fortunately, there are many ways that you can become an independent student, whether you are currently in high school or college. Here are some tips on how you can become an independent student:
1) Start Saving Money Now! – If you want to become an independent student someday then start saving your money now! Have a job during the summer and put all of the money into savings so that when the time comes for school, there will be enough money saved up for tuition and living expenses without needing any help from anyone else (including your parents).
2) Take Out Loans – Another option would be taking out loans through institutions such as Sallie Mae or Wells Fargo in order to pay for tuition costs as well as living expenses while being enrolled full-time at an accredited university or college program where tuition rates may vary depending on location (some states charge less than others do).
How To Become Independent Student
Watching your student master a hard concept in school is a truly gratifying experience. But what about those times when your student doesn’t grasp the material right away? What can you do when they stumble through the lessons and can’t complete the learning activities?
If your child is enrolled in an online school like Connections Academy, as their parent and Learning Coach, it’s important to play an active role in supporting your online student. By reinforcing good elementary and middle school study skills that help them find success, especially with concepts that may be new or hard for them, you are beginning to develop an independent learner.
While the teacher can help with understanding, you can help your student hone their independent learning skills, which will help them throughout their school journey and beyond.
Here are seven steps to help your student develop independent study skills that foster effective learning. While these are geared towards elementary and middle school online learners, high school students looking for ways to study smarter can benefit from these study tips as well.
How to Become an Independent Learner in 7 Steps:
1. Clearly Identify Objectives
Just like inputting your destination in a GPS, your student needs to know their destination before they can find their route. Identifying objectives is a study skill that independent learners master.
Make sure your student understands what they are supposed to get out of each lesson or activity before it begins. With objectives that are as clear as possible, students can determine what information they need to learn and how it is going to benefit them in their studies.
2. Master the Art of Note Taking
Independent learners are great listeners. And few things reveal their listening skills better than note taking. Note taking is an essential study skill that students begin learning in elementary school.
Notes should be taken when students study lessons, attend a LiveLesson online classes, do research, or watch an educational video. Research shows that when students take notes, they retain more information.
But just because your student is taking notes during an online lesson doesn’t mean they are doing so effectively. If you see your student struggling to understand or remember the most important information in the lesson, help them become an independent learner by working on note taking strategies. These include:
- Previewing the readings
- Paying attention and writing down the boldface words and headings
- Reworking main ideas to ensure they understand what is being taught
- Reading any captions
- Using different tools and supplies for note-taking, including highlighters, sticky notes, index cards, graphs, charts, and diagrams
- Making sure the notes taken can answer or reference the objectives and questions that accompany each lesson
3. Teach Them to Study Smarter
Just by enrolling your student in a virtual school like Connections Academy, a level of independence will be learned. You customize your student’s school schedule for what works best for them, and that includes their study times.
Thanks to the benefits of a virtual school, your student is already learning how to stay on track with their lessons, homework, extracurricular clubs and activities daily. By practicing to manage and optimize their day in elementary and middle school, they are developing an essential study skill that will stay with them in high school and beyond.
Outside of controlling their day, your independent learner can also learn neuroscience-based study tips that help them to study smarter for those tough subjects when they come up.
4. Provide a Variety of Learning Materials
Your student may need more than just a pen and paper to learn. Make sure you have helpful tools in their online learning space such as whiteboards and graph paper so students can display information in different ways. When it comes to math and science, doing hands-on activities is critical. Many online schools like Connections Academy offer a wealth of resources and instructional tools that can help bring learning to life.
Other online study tools like note taking apps, study planners, digital flashcards, and more can also help your student hone their independent learning skills.
5. Utilize Online Discussions
A day in school is whatever your student makes of it. They can be engaged or disengaged, whether in a virtual setting or in a brick-and-mortar school.
One of the unique benefits of virtual school is that students can interact in real-time classroom sessions. Encourage your student to use these opportunities to ask questions and start discussions about difficult concepts. Support from their peers can be an incredibly effective learning tool, and it teaches them to make the most of learning opportunities—wherever they may be.
6. Develop Good Study Habits
Repetition is the key to retention, so play around with different ways to review notes and absorb information. Elementary school students benefit from playing review games. Middle school study skills could include practice quizzes. Create sample test questions to help your student use the information they are learning in different ways.
7. Monitor Progress
Online schools make it easy for you to track your student’s progress and view their grades at any time. As soon as you notice a dip in your student’s performance, you can identify the problem and take the steps to get back on track.
Encourage your student to reflect on their progress and have them think about the way they learn best. Which study skills were most useful? What areas do they still need to improve upon? If you notice that your child is struggling to learn certain concepts, let their teacher know. Then you can all work together to develop solutions that will contribute to more effective studying and better comprehension.
The more they realize their study strengths (and weaknesses), the more your student can master their independent learning skills.
When to Get Extra Support
Independent learners know when to ask for help. If your student continues to struggle with certain concepts or is beginning to fall behind, it may be time for a tutor. Many online schools offer varying degrees of tutoring services to support your student. Learn more about how to tell if your student needs a tutor.
