Before 2020, the idea of students pursuing their desired courses from the comfort of their homes seemed far-fetched. However, since the new normal set in, the world has adapted to what was previously unimaginable.
Online learning now seems to be the only safe and viable option to keep academics alive. While it has provided the ease of bringing education to our very doorstep, it has also made the unthinkable happen – making the courses of leading institutes and faculties available to all. But not all aspects of online learning are rainbows and sunshine. So, let’s explore online learning across its many dimensions.
Tips for Effective Online Learning:
Firstly, let’s get on with some tips for digital learning. This would highly help in leveraging the most democratized learning platforms to their fullest potential.
- Digital proficiency of students – Not every child gets to grow up with a smart device in hand. Once a faculty understands this, a customized learning plan would fall in order. This would make sure that the needs of all students are met.
- Encouraging group work – For students connecting virtually, there would always be a longing for face-to-face interactions. Keeping them occupied by involving them in different group tasks would encourage the students to get connected with peers and would keep their most-needed socializing quotient in check.
- Developing a community – Keeping the learning circle socialized is keeping them in touch with the crucible of human civilization. Learners would get to know different perspectives on the same topic, help and get helped by others in the community, and unlock the strengths of learning as a group along with having fun.
- Remodeling the course – Being flexible with the lesson plans and deadlines, while respecting the situation of different students would help them feel more involved. Moreover, shaking up the content delivery by mixing and changing the tasks that the learners do, would effectively save them from monotony and help them sustain curiosity.
Advantages and Challenges:
Compared to conventional classroom learning, online learning has disrupted the traditional approach and has given it a much-needed push to reinvent itself. Amongst tons of advantages that it possesses, the following are a notable few:
- Ever dreamed of getting into the sessions conducted by faculties from the most renowned institutions? Travel, accommodation, fees, and expenses would all dangle right before our eyes holding up a ‘NO’ placard. But, online learning has chased away these barriers democratizing learning for everyone who has the willingness to learn.
- Tapping the power of socializing! For those who have liked, shared, and commented on social media posts across various platforms, it’d be a rewarding experience to take part in discussion forums, which earlier happened only as hear-say, and all those remarkable takeaways vanish before we could even understand it.
- Real-time usage of online resources such as websites or apps that aid in an easier understanding of the course, would also instigate a learning response amongst the learners that goes all the way back to the very start of mankind – the ability to recognize and match patterns.
But there’s also a flip side to this coin. Despite all the lauding, the following are some of the drawbacks of online learning:
- Limited attention span – Though the purpose served is different, our mind finds it hard to differentiate between the learning time on our smartphones or PC and the fun time we have with them. The impact of social media has reduced the attention span to an infinitesimally smaller unit than what our previous generations had.
- Uneven distribution of resources is another problem that is common among predominant learners. Not all have good internet connectivity or a peaceful yoga-compatible environment to learn every day.
- There’s a lack of in-person interactions which is very crucial for students. There’s a possibility for a sizeable portion of the current learning generation are hardcore introverts. But, beyond learning there’s a place called ‘work’ and it needs socially compatible persons.
This takes us to the question, is online learning effective? The answer lies in the alternative which could provide the same benefits as this. Online learning is a boon to the aspirants who have a thirst for knowledge and it’s our prime responsibility to weed out its shortcomings, to let them thrive.
Conclusion:
Post the pandemic, online learning has become an inseparable module in mainstream education. The days of looking down on a virtual learning certificate are long past us. So, an open mindset for the faculties in devising the course contents and a curious mindset for the learners to get hands-on in the delivered course would together create a successful recipe for effective and interactive online learning.
FAQ:
Also, making a truce with the reality that all of us aren’t gifted with the same internet infrastructure calls for providing different means to continue online learning rather than a one-size-fits-all approach. Besides, it’s not reasonable to ask every learner to afford a quiet and broadband savvy place to live.
