The coronavirus outburst brought tatters not only in the economy but also in the education sector. The virus-induced lockdown resulted in schools shut down across the world. According to the World Economic Forum report, more than 1.2 billion children in 186 countries suffered from the Covid-19 shutdown.
It brings us to the changes the education sector witnessed in the last two years. While most of us and our children were stuck at home, distinctive ways of e-learning emerged during the pandemic, and a lot of people became online instructors and learners. Within two years, online classrooms became the most torrid buzzword to take education to another level. According to research, online learning became the sole retention of information and saved time for many students and teachers.
Here’s how online learning helped us during the pandemic and is continuing to do so
Flexible hours: The new form of learning made education accessible from any part of the world at any given point in time. Students learnt from anywhere with just good internet connectivity.
Accessibility to tons of resources: Students and online educators had a lot of resources – internet technologies and informative platforms like YouTube – making teaching more effective than ever.
No travel expenses: You only need a decent laptop/ipad and 5G to grasp good-quality education. So yes, you do not need to travel anywhere to study.
Class recordings: If you miss an important lecture or class, you do not have to worry. You can record everything and anything. Isn’t that great?
Stay safe, stay updated: Learning just got easier. Thanks to several e-learning platforms that made education accessible and smooth. You can now learn from your safe homes and your siblings’ and parents’ guidance.
How effective is online learning? Here’s what you must know
We have discussed the steady rise of online learning. But is it really effective? If yes, how effective is it? Are students learning more with virtual education? Let’s try to answer these questions. The World Economic Forum says students learn faster through e-learning than traditional forms of learning.
“Some research demonstrates that on average, students retain 25-60% more material when learning online compared to only 8-10% in a classroom. This is because students are able to learn faster online; e-learning requires 40-60% less time to learn than in a conventional classroom setting since scholars can learn at their own pace, going back and re-reading, skipping, or through concepts as they choose,” says the World Economic Forum.
Not just this. Virtual participation in extracurricular activities like dance, music, painting, general counseling etc., also turned out to be fruitful for children who were hit hard by the psychological repercussions of the coronavirus. In addition, media reports claimed dancers, choreographers, musicians, and other artists turned to online platforms like Instagram to keep children and other people engaged amid a gloomy period.
With innumerable options — from beginners to advanced level, jazz to yoga — students across the globe participated in various forms of virtual learning and tried to explore “beyond classroom wisdom” from the comfort of their homes.
The virus did not take away our learning capabilities
Despite being confined to four walls and smart devices, students did learn a lot during the pandemic. A lot of this was virtual. It opened a plethora of options for them to learn, outgrow and outshine in their chosen area of study: be it academics, arts or aesthetics. At no given point, learning did not stop, thanks to virtual learning. It is here to stay, and it is about to transform many young lives most productively. Give your children this surreal experience so that they learn something beyond textbooks.
