Comment on an article: What Makes a Successful Online Student?

What Makes a Successful Online Student?

I've read an article about what makes a successful online student on a page Illinois Online Network and it was really interesting.

The article dealt with qualities of online students. It said that every student who wants to study online should be okay with sharing their life or personal experiences with other students through online chat. I reckon that the online environment is really good for introverts, because it can be hard for them in "real life" to express their opinions or ideas, so this chat can help them to become an active member of a class. 

Online studying goes hand in hand with no required attendance, no supervision and with self responsibility. It is necessary to be responsible and to have determination to complete all tasks.

And because while online courses there is no face-to-face contact, the article recommended that students should not be shy if they don't understand or if they don't get something. If they don't say immediately that something is wrong, the instructor will never know, because he can't see the students. But I think that this can be problem also in normal classes where students are present. They very often pretend that everything is okay, just because they don't want to look stupidly or feel ashamed. 

Many people think that it is a lot easier to study online, but in fact it is usually the same or harder than normal classes. As it was written in the article, students need to have an internet connection and also be able to spend from 4 to 15 hours per week per course. So they just cannot be slacking, because it's a real commitment. I can personally say that for me it's better to attend classes in person, because when I don't have any pressure or motivation to do something on my own, I am not usually able to persuade myself to do something. So I can only agree with the article that online courses are not for everybody. Online students should be able to participate in virtual classrooms from 5 to 7 days per week, be responsible and complete their tasks on time, work on a project with other students and of course they should know how to use computer and other technologies.