Online learning in COVID-19 Lockdown

In nearly all parts of the world, the COVID-19 pandemic triggered all the teaching methods, making the learning process shift to online classes. Many schools in India have adapted to the new normal of e-learning. Some educational institutions who had prior adoption of technology have quickly transitioned with significant success. While some take this in stride, for a few, it’s an entirely new channel of delivery. So, the advantages of online learning are a success.

With the advent of Covid-19, one of the easiest and safest ways is e-learning. E-learning now applies to academics as well as conducting online webinars, conferences, and extracurricular activities. It’s also an excellent option to master a new hobby or acquire new skills. With the pandemic poses and the ease of the advantages of online learning, the demand for e-learning has significantly risen.    

As with other teaching methods, the advantages of online learning are immense. 

The Advantages Of Online Learning: 

• Efficiency – E-learning is an extremely efficient means for educational institutions to deliver lessons. With the click of a few buttons, both the student and teacher can achieve tasks such as serving assignments, completing tests, and interacting with others. The option to record the lesson and review it later is a tremendous advantage of online learning. 
• Less absenteeism – Whether or not COVID students, attending classes from the comfort of your home leaves little room to maneuver and miss class.
• Increased access and reach – Learning can occur anywhere as long as the student and teacher both have a device handy with connectivity. As opposed to physical classes where the institute requires the student to be physically present, online classes are accessible from any corner of the world.
• Encourages shy kids – A class atmosphere with many students can intimidate the shyer kids. It’s easier for the more withdrawn children to open up during online classes. Being in a sociable environment and surrounded by everything commonplace ensures students can be more forthcoming with participation. 

For many, Covid-19 has been a time of change, especially in working and studying. While you cannot replicate all that is taught in a classroom situation, there’s plenty to learn online. 

While face-to-face teaching has its merits, the advantages of online learning flourishes with the plethora of online tools and innovative methods.

Transition To Digital

While face-to-face teaching has its merits, online learning flourishes with the plethora of online tools and innovative methods.

Suppose a gifted mathematics teacher digitally records his/her entire class and uploads it online along with supplementary and complementary notes, videos, and comments, over some time. In that case, it becomes a valuable source from which students can learn.

While technology is enabling, it can also be limiting, particularly in a county such as India, where primary access is a challenge. Very few students have access to a laptop or fast-streaming internet. This makes attendance as well as class participation an issue.

Being present in front of the computer for hours together is difficult. Sometimes, because of a slow network connection or a lag, the teacher isn’t audible.    

Challenges With Online Learning

• Not suitable for everyone – Every student has a different style/way of learning. While some prefer kinaesthetic learning, others favor auditory and visual. With advantages of online learning, students need to sit in front of their devices, listen, and understand the lesson. This may not suit all learning styles.
• Deficiency in focus – At some point, online classes can get monotonous, and this is when students tend to lose focus. Boredom is a common occurrence when face-to-face interaction is absent. The power of keeping online classes interactive, engaging, informative, and crisp to help students grasp everything is vested in the hands of the teacher.   
• Technology issues – This is pertinent with COVID-19 and education, wherein any break in connectivity can cause a major issue in continuing the learning of the child, which can be detrimental.
• Lack of social interaction – Humans are social beings, and we learn a lot by merely being around others. The advantages of online learning takes all forms of physical interaction away. Being around other students helps discuss ideas, talk out theories, or engage in meaningful conversation, which is an essential part of learning.   
• Training teachers – The main bottleneck is the need for teachers to adapt their teaching methods to the instrument. Not all teachers are technology-friendly. They need to invest plenty of time to align themselves with the latest technology to make sure they can conduct online classes seamlessly. Moreover, a physical setting is more dynamic, and instructors can stimulate feedback. When it’s online, professors need to find creative ways to engage students.   
• Manage screen time – Continuous screen time can be hazardous to health. A countermeasure is incorporating regular breaks, limiting screen time for youngsters, avoiding studying under dim lighting, and regularly performing basic eye exercises. It’s also essential for kids to maintain good posture to avoid any back and neck problems. A few precautions should be taken in order to ensure they are safe and healthy.

While all learning modes come with their positives and negatives, this crisis effortlessly illustrates that e-learning will form an essential part of the learning-teaching process.

Not Just About Classes

Looking beyond classes, many people feel it’s not easy to connect to a laptop, speak into a microphone, and listen and learn at the other end.

Education isn’t just about learning; it’s a lot more – interactions, free-flowing open discussions, broadening ideas, mentoring each student, and debates. While most educational institutions attempt to meet such elements to the fullest, there’s a lot lost in translation on the online platform.

Eye contact is another advantage of face-to-face teaching. When teachers make eye contact with their students, they can instantly gauge if they are paying attention or spacing out.

With the shift to the advantages of online learning and COVID education, many students do not have access to facilities like a vast library.

The Way Going Forward

What does online learning mean in the future? 

If both students and teachers work in unison, where universities ensure online classes are taken to nodal places, and the institution takes the responsibility to connect students there, there’s a high chance of success.

Within hours of learning about the lockdown and online learning, most educational institutions could gather students and teachers and commence the learning process. This proves the infrastructure is present; it hasn’t been tapped yet. 

Let’s face it-This is a large part of future learning. This instrument is excellent during times like the pandemic. Also, it caters to regular classroom hiccups due to natural disasters, riots, heavy rain, heat, and cold waves and hartals.   

Today, you cannot limit knowledge and learning by geographies; your willingness to learn and your mindset is the only restriction. The advantages of online learning has found its feet in the Indian market, it’s yet to be seen how it treads forward, but it will undoubtedly take many with it as it progresses. 

Every form of technology comes with its distinct set of benefits and disadvantages; how you use it determines how or how much it can influence you. The same applies to the advantages of online learning. If you use it properly, it’s nothing short of a blessing. It’s imperative to maintain a healthy balance, to pave a prosperous future for children. 

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