Coronavirus forced schools to migrate to online learning. Weeks later, some students have been doing better than they were doing prior to the lockdowns.
School lockdowns due to coronavirus forced schools to shut down and implement online learning. For most students and teachers, they were unprepared for such a shift in the mode of learning. However, in the past few weeks, students and teachers have been able to adapt and migrate to online learning platforms with ease.
The effectiveness of the platform, however, has been questioned by experts, teachers and students, where many wonder if virtual learning compromise education quality.
Online learning benefiting some students
However, there is a group of students who are satisfied with the transition to online learning and have indicated their joy on the new learning methods. These students have indicated that they consider online education more effective than face to face learning and this has been reflected in their school performances.
In an interview with the New York times, Salah-Deen Fouathia, an eighth-grader at Voice Charter School in Queens, said he felt more comfortable studying at home. Before the schools were put on lockdown and the learning process transitioned online, he was failing in his health classes and was not doing great in Math.
However, the transition to online learning has seen a positive trend in his performances in the subject he previously had a problem with. He said, in the interview, that he enjoyed studying because it was easy to focus, and the education system meant students were able to connect one on one with a teacher.
Groups benefiting
Students who are introverted and those who struggle to pay attention in class have also seen an improvement by using online learning. Mike Drosos, a seventh-grade math teacher at Voice Charter, said some of his students who were shy to even speak in class or raise their hands to answer a question are now emailing him about learning.
Miari Roberts, a special education teacher at Brooklyn Academy High School, also aired the same sentiments. Roberts indicated that one student, in particular, had taken a turn for the best during the lockdown period. Before the lockdowns, she did not take education seriously, according to Roberts, but now the student focuses on the work given and has made a tremendous improvement in her education.
Motivated students have also benefited greatly from online learning, according to teachers and parents. They are able to schedule the time they want to study, plan their work and submit any assignment given to them.
The lockdowns have laid bare that a hybrid system can work in schools. Under normal circumstances, some of these students’ education would be on a decline, but the lockdown has seen their grades improve in the past few weeks the schools had been in lockdowns. Post coronavirus, adapting some form of online learning may end up helping a lot of students.
Featured image by Pixabay
