Dave and Dujanovic discussed Tuesday what goes into a school district's decision to switch to remote learning. (PHOTO: Getty Images)
SALT LAKE CITY — How do students make the most of their online learning during a pandemic?
Emily Erickson, an Alta High School senior, joined Lee Lonsberry on Live Mic Friday to share tips on how she excels while learning outside a classroom.
“Talk to me about time, about making sure you’re wisely use your time,” Lee asked.
“Yeah, that’s a really hard thing for some students to do when you’re managing yourself,” Erickson said. “The biggest tip I would give for students in managing their own time is have an agenda going into each and every day.”
She said she prefers to wake up early and jot down the three or four key objectives she wants to accomplish for the day.
“I like to work through those and finish them as quickly as possible,” Erickson said. “And if I’m feeling motivated I’ll do more studies […] But at least I know I got the big things out-of-the-way early on.”
Lonsberry acknowledged he has difficulty sometimes staying focused on the job while working at home.
“How are you able to combat those temptations to just kind of meander around the house when you ought to be learning, working on your three or four important objectives?” Lonsberry asked.
“Yeah that’s definitely something I’ve had to work on,” she said. “But what I’ve found that really works for me is actually just getting up early in the morning, even before my parents are awake.”
She said her parents try to keep the noise down when she’s taking a test or writing an important paper.
Erickson said she also goes to a quiet spot — such as a park bench — to do her schoolwork.
“There’s a gym that I like to go to,” she said. “They have a quiet spot in the hallway where I’ve worked a lot. That kind of helps me stay focused on the work that I need to get done.”
However, the pandemic has made her reconsider what she wants to do with her life, Erickson said.
“One of my goals has always been to graduate from college debt-free,” she said.
Erickson said she would like to study business optimization and finance.
She has developed a list of six strategies to help the online student, which Lonsberry said he can apply to his own life.
“Let me just put in a word now, Emily,” he said. “If things don’t work out for me on this radio show, do you think you would hire me someday?”
“Absolutely,” she replied.
Live Mic with Lee Lonsberry can be heard weekdays from 12:30 p.m. to 3:00 p.m. on KSL NewsRadio. Users can find the show on the KSL NewsRadio website and app.