Among the hundreds of questions begged as this year-long pandemic dwindles and rays of hope filter each home is a significant one that will determine the fate of this pandemic's aftereffects: did COVID-19 permanently change education?
As the pandemic continues to unfold, we have come to realize that barely any aspect of our daily lives was left uninfluenced. One arena which has certainly seen massive adjustments as a result of COVID-19 is the education sector. Necessitating a range of unprecedented social isolation and safety measures, universities and schools globally shut their doors overnight in the face of COVID, making online learning an urgent need, rather than an option. Ill-equipped with knowledge, students and teachers had to immediately familiarize themselves with a variety of online programs such as Google classroom and Zoom to teach and have classes on a fully remote basis.
With this unforeseen shift away from traditional learning, it is only appropriate to ask ourselves how the adoption of online learning impacted our ability to learn, its impact on future learningIt is without a doubt that online learning is/was emotionally draining, low rewarding, and very socially isolating. Spending hours in front of a screen, juggling classes, assignments, tests, and homework remotely, without much human interaction and communication can often result in several mental health issues such as heightened stress, anxiety, and negative thoughts. Additionally, with the lack of self-motivation embedded in online learning’s environment, it was difficult to learn and grasp new material especially without any of the added pressure normally identified with traditional colleges and schools, such as doing your work in the library with your friends. Social isolation coupled with lack of self motivation and Zoom fatigue caused many students to slip backwards, losing knowledge and skills they once had.
Moreover, to evaluate the long-term ramifications of COVID-19 we need to reflect on how our sense of time and ability to pay attention have been disrupted during the pandemic. Tik Tok, a platform that exploded in popularity during the beginning of the pandemic, has rewired the younger generations’ brains into anticipating instant fulfillment with their perfectly-curated “for you page” that leaves you watching 15-30 second videos for hours. Like other social media apps, such technology trains us to consume large amounts of information quickly and poorly, without fully processing them, inevitably lowering one’s attention span, making it extremely hard for students to focus on 75-minute lectures in college or take an in-person test without the urge to check their phone every couple of minutes.
However, we also need to acknowledge online learning’s multifaceted benefits: it has allowed students to learn conveniently from their houses, making education more accessible for those who had difficulties being physically present at school all the time. In that vein, many international students were able to go back and spend time with their families back home.
It is no surprise that this pandemic has left its mark on student learning and student well-being and whether e-learning will continue to persist post-pandemic or not, it is evident that hybrid learning will definitely be implemented in the future.
Comments