Students experiences of Online Learning during the novel COVID-19 pandemic

The novel COVID­-19 outbreak left its mark on almost all spheres of life, including education. While technological advances allowed education to continue online, it is worth exploring what students across different levels feel about this change, even as attempts are being made to reopen educational institutions in a phased manner. Speaking to students and getting their feedback about online learning from across the world threw up some interesting points:-

• Bypass attendance and assessment:- Irrespective of the learning platform, many say that students log-in at the beginning of the class and then move away to watch YouTube videos or play games or chat with friends. As a result, they do not gain anything from the classes. One stu­dent points out that even online exams are not foolproof. “While many take it seriously, some have tried to cheat and then share it in their peer groups,” he says, adding that online classes cannot replace a real classroom environment.
• Physical discomfort:- Given the long hours spent before the screen, either on a tablet or a smartphone, students are beginning to report ear and eye strain and also body pain. Depression and stress related illnesses have also become common. While many report to being stressed by the online approach, A high school student, Ganesh points out, “People can’t share their feelings or express themselves in the way they used to before.” This, he says, leads to feeling low mentally.
• Lack of socialisation:- An online education that lacks the social aspect of learning cannot be expected to be as effective as traditional classes.  Af­ter close to nine months of a single mode of content delivery, students confess to being bored with online education. One student likened it to “a lion being confined to a small space in a zoo”. Most students would prefer a return to the offline mode of learning or at least a blended approach. 
• Teachers under stress:- Teachers have experienced tremendous stress due to the online mode of education. First, the preparation time has almost doubled. Second, teachers believe that the students do not take their in­structions seriously. Teachers now have to call each student to remind him/her to submit assignments or to appear for assessments. “Online classes do not provide enough variations for the teacher to innovate,” believes Kolkata (India) ­based Simran sharma. Many miss the physical interactions and socialisation with teachers and their peer groups.

Media contact details:-

Name – Shikher goyal

Website – Digitally learn

Mail – shikher@digitallylearn.com