During the height of the Covid-19 pandemic, online learning was once a necessity.
With some help from the government and private sectors, a lot of learning options were made available out there.
It is only a matter of knowing your ways. The ball is in your court!
The challenge was addressed by implementing what is called the blended or distance learning with the use of different modalities or processes.
There are modules made available in digital form, there would also be classes to be held online or through television or radio.
For me personally, I have had my fair share of online classes; sharing videos and audios. Engaging with my students through different applications and experimenting available platforms the Internet of Things (IoT) has to offer.
I find it exciting; exploring new ways but at the same time truly exhausting, due to the total number of screen hours it takes to create evolving digital materials.
To ensure smoother adaptability, I shifted my teaching priorities.
Rather than thinking of how to take what I currently do to an online format, how do I adapt my course so it becomes what students need most at a particular moment?
Reducing learner anxiety at its core is my fundamental value when it comes to teaching.
When it comes to online learning, students and educators alike tend to enjoy the fact that they are able to be present flexibly; wherever they are, supposing that their internet connection is stable.
We all know how casual people can be when it comes to getting ready virtually for classes.
Was that a fast shower you had? Or no shower at all? We get the idea!
And this new way of learning is truly a great adjustment not just for the students, but also for their parents and teachers.
However, life adjustments often come with a wide range of emotions and experiences.
That transition can feel smooth, and at other times, downright bumpy!
Some people may also find themselves in survival mode trying to overcome learning disabilities and household struggles impacting students’ participation online (Education in a Pandemic: The Disparate Impact of Covid-19 on Students, 2021).
Yes, sir. Uncertainties cause a certain amount of stress, certainly!
Additionally, during that transition, parents hastily needed to purchase gadgets that their children use for online learning, and many families cannot keep up—children from poor families, and those who live in rural places without stable internet connection.
Parents are also expected to guide their children in studying through the use of modules, but this is quite difficult for parents that need to work (at home, at the same time, fighting for that same internet connection) while juggling house chores.
This wouldn’t be any easier; especially for parents who did not go to school.
This is also a new challenge for teachers.
Their ways of teaching and evaluating the learning of those they teach will be far different from before.
A teacher from SK Hulu Kelang mentioned, "Online learning can be especially difficult for weak learners and students with disabilities. They tend to receive limited support than needed while being isolated. Student with reading disabilities, for instance, require intensive step-by-step guidance in order to improve and engage with their peers and educators.”
"Now that we are transitioning to the endemic phase, online learning has completely stopped”, Nur Balqish Md Fazil continued.
In other places, teachers need to learn how to teach in front of a camera—they are what we call teacher-broadcasters that will use television and radio in order to teach.
In some rural regions, our teachers even need to sacrifice time to deliver out copies of printed modules to their students. Teachers really are heroes.
Everyone is making great sacrifices for the sake of education.
These sacrifices are signs of giving education importance—as it should and always be!
However, is online learning here to stay?
To shift current attitudes, we must remember to take a moment and go beyond thanking all parties especially educators and parents by acknowledging their sacrifice done.
They are the heroes that they have always been and will continue to be.
Possibly due to traumatic events that come with online learning, most have yet to willingly want to adopt the technologies that come with it.
What have we learned so far about our acquired skills during this agile time? How can we sustain it?
Technology advocates may predict that online learning is the best path moving forward, but major education stakeholders distinctly disagree: Students and parents, both!
Online learning is, possibly, not the future after all.
Students and parents alike concur.
At least, most of them, for now.
Who knows what it is going to be like five years from now?
SYAZUIN SAZALI is a certified English language and soft skills coach. She aims to continuously advocate for progressive growth in education.
Linkedin & Instagram: @syazuinsazali, Email: syazuinsazali@gmail.com