Creating relationships within any educational community is essential, but when you attend classes online, those relationships become all the more important and developing them can sometimes be challenging. AHU Online has made it a priority to support students and help them find that sense of community.
Here are six fundamental ways AHU Online students engage in an online educational community.
1. Small Class Size
Keeping classes smaller and student-to-teacher ratios lower means students can participate in classes and make relationships with other online students. With the student-to-teacher ratio for AHU Online around 20:1, professors have the time and availability to connect with online students outside of traditional school hours and at times when working students are more likely to be available.
Smaller class sizes foster communication and cooperation among students as well. Students in online classes may sometimes feel anonymous; however, in a smaller class, it is easier to participate in class discussions and connect with the group. With fewer students in each course section, each student’s contribution is more significant and valuable.
2. Student Support
AHU Online believes in a student-centered approach to learning and in providing as much support as possible for their community of busy, hard-working students. This commitment to student success begins at enrollment when each student is assigned a Retention Specialist whose responsibility is to guide the student through his or her educational journey at AHU Online.
The Retention Specialist guides the student from enrollment to graduation, serving as mentor, advisor, confidant, and coach. Retention Specialists help online students connect with other members of AHU’s online community, such as professors and support staff.
3. Collaborative Learning
Group projects and collaborations help build connections that can last a lifetime, and they are an important part of online education. Online collaborative learning creates an environment in which students are encouraged and supported to work together, innovate, and solve problems. 1
By sharing learning experiences, online students are not only able to broaden their knowledge base, but they are also able to network and build relationships with others in their field.
4. Interactive Course Management System
The key to online learning is a well-designed management system. AHU Online uses a learning management system called Canvas®, which allows students to easily communicate with professors and other students. Canvas® can help maintain course calendars and provide deadline reminders, making everything more convenient. This learning management system also has an app so that students can keep up with coursework and deadlines on-the-go.
5. Partner Organizations
AHU Online is a well-connected healthcare university and has key relationships with Adventist Health System, Florida Hospital, Centura Health, and Shawnee Mission Health. Through these partnerships, AHU Online students have access to a network of thousands of healthcare professionals. This network gives AHU Online students the opportunity to build relationships with like-minded professionals, find mentors, and increase their job placement rates. These partner healthcare facilities and networks are significant members of the AHU community and available to AHU Online students.
6. University Activities
Since AHU Online has a strong affiliation with the AHU campus, online students have access to all AHU campus life events. Weekly announcements are sent to online students and campus students alike. Many events on campus are streamed live, allowing online students to engage through internet and social media platforms. Following the AHU Online Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter accounts is another great way to interact with faculty, staff, and students.
Creating a supportive and interactive educational community is an essential part of any education. For online students, this aspect of higher learning is even more important since students are accessing classes remotely, usually from home which can make fostering a community a struggle. Online students are often juggling work, family, and classes, and making time for additional relationships may require more planning than for their campus student counterparts.
AHU Online provides their students with many opportunities to find and engage the support they need to succeed and continue the path toward advancing their healthcare careers.
Learn more here about how AHU Online can help you expand your professional community and reach your career goals.
Sources:
- A.W. Bates, “Online Collaborative Learning,” Teaching in a Digital Age, (Vancouver BC: BC Campus, 2015), 4.4, https://opentextbc.ca/teachinginadigitalage/chapter/6-5-online-collaborative-learning/.
