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E-learning: Is it a Modern Era Midas Touch?

by | Jan 1, 2021 | Manuscripts | 0 comments

Arnab Mazumder, Bachelor’s in Engineering

Undergraduate Student, Ramaiah Institute of Technology, Bangalore, India

 

The COVID-19 pandemic has overblown the educational systems worldwide, leading to a discontinuity and variation in traditional teaching. According to the UNICEF monitoring, the lockdown has a notable impact on about 61.6 percent of the world’s student population.(1)

E-learning platforms has now become an indispensable and obligatory method for education. Contrarily it has an impact on academic integrity, a rise in contract cheating and academic file-sharing, and exam cheating was identified as particularly problematic.(2)

 

Figure 1: Education during COVID-19; Source- World Bank (Adapted from https://www.europeandataportal.eu/en/impact-studies/covid-19/education-during-covid-19-moving-towards-e-learning)

 Teachers’ perspective:

Teachers who were intimidated by the momentum of technology now must take the bull by its horns where discovering the appropriate teaching platform being the first and foremost phase. Effectively steering a platform and manoeuvring its specific features and aspects to teach excellently thereby ensuring that all students are indeed learning is paramount. Virtual classrooms have brought up issues of classroom management that is not just limited to those teachers for the higher grades but also for the pre-primary and primary grades.(3) For the educational institutions, providing specialised training to their teachers to become adept at the task of virtual teaching is also a herculean mission. Moreover, confirming that they have access to the right hardware, good Internet connectivity, ability to proficiently conduct online assessments are also an uphill battle.

 Students’ outlook:

Some students without reliable internet access struggle to participate in digital learning; this gap is seen across countries. Retention of the material rises to 25-60% when learning online contrarily it is 8-10% in a classroom. As students can learn at their own pace in e-learning, it requires 40-60% less time to learn than in a traditional classroom setting.(4) Another survey showed contradicting results About 50% of the students liked the online mode of education, as against 32% who did not like it. However, 75 % of them invoked indiscipline and cited classroom teaching as a more convenient and interactive way of learning.(5)

Exhaustive utilization of online learning needs a concerted effort to go beyond replicating a physical class, using a range of collaboration tools and engagement methods can assist the process.

 Conclusion

The world as we know has changed in the blink of an eye. Schools closed overnight, students were confined to their homes and parents had to grapple with keeping children productive at home. Extended closure of institutes gave online teaching some verisimilitude. Presently everyone must do it yet few know-hows. There are various issues that we need to confront for a smooth transition.

Adaptation is key not just about technology, encouraging students to observe and learn independently from the world around them.

Virtual (E-) learning is quite contrasting than in a face-to-face setting, and as a student, it is important to think about their interests, attentiveness, needs, and goals before committing to the virtual classroom experience. The pandemic has shown that online learning is going to be part of reality, now it is up to students to seek out new opportunities through it. Parents and teachers must establish a new equilibrium and a new normal for learning amid the present challenges.(6)

 

References

  1. org. 2020. Education During COVID-19 And Beyond. [online] Available at: <https://www.un.org/development/desa/dspd/wp-content/uploads/sites/22/2020/08/sg_policy_brief_covid-19_and_education_august_2020.pdf> [Accessed 30 November 2020;19:00hrs].
  2. Rajabalee, Y. B., Santally, M. I., & Rennie, F. (2020). Modelling Students’ Performances in Activity-Based E-Learning From a Learning Analytics Perspective: Implications and Relevance for Learning Design. International Journal of Distance Education Technologies (IJDET), 18(4), 71-93.
  3. Jayachithra, J. (2020). Information and Communication Technology in Teaching and Learning: Perspectives on E-Learning at Higher Education Level. International Journal of Recent Technology and Engineering (IJRTE) ISSN, 2277-3878.
  4. Radha, R., Mahalakshmi, K., Kumar, V. S., & Saravanakumar, A. R. (2020). E-Learning during lockdown of covid-19 pandemic: a global perspective. International journal of control and automation, 13(4), 1088-1099.
  5. Zulfiqar, M. S., Siddiqui, G. K., & Mahmood, S. (2020). A Comparison Between Online and on-campus Classes: Taking University Students’ Perspective. Review of Education, Administration & LAW, 3(2), 157-163.

6. Sari, Y. Y., Zulaiha, S., & Mulyono, H. (2020). The development of a digital application to promote parents’ involvement in character education at primary schools. İlköğretim Online, 19(4), 2564-2570.

 

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