Since March of 2020, students all over the world have adjusted to a new method of learning. On programs like Zoom, students have used the past year to teach themselves how to learn outside of the classroom. It’s important to continue online learning, despite the circumstances of the pandemic.
Many students have been able to benefit greatly from their new classrooms, which just so happens to be their bedrooms as well.
Students have created new ways of studying and staying focused, amidst the chaos that flooded the world.
According to Santa Clara University’s 2019 Survey, there are several advantages to online learning.
The survey cites flexibility and accessibility amongst them, “The flexibility of online courses and the opportunity for students to work at their own pace and schedule was mentioned in 21% of comments.”
“In addition, 23% of comments noted that the lectures, tests/quizzes, and other class materials provided by the professor were valuable,” reads the survey.
Students have been able to learn more about themselves while being at home, like how to manage time between school, family, and work.
The pandemic also gave students an opportunity to learn more about their learning style. For example if they are a visual, auditory, verbal, or kinesthetic learner.
No one could have predicted the circumstances of sending millions of students home for over a year, but once it happened everything changed on the educational front. Everyone had to become flexible to the new circumstances that were given.
Students throughout the Cal State systems have seen various fluctuations since the beginning of COVID-19.
According to the LA Times at Cal State Long Beach, the average GPA of Fall 2019 was 3.09.
As of Fall 2020, when students began to get a tighter grasp of online learning, compared to the start of the pandemic in the spring, the average GPA went up to 3.26.
The LA Times also reported that they were not the only Cal State to see raises in academic achievement. Institutions such as Cal State Dominguez and Cal State Northridge also saw increases in GPA’s, as well as an overall decrease in students not passing classes.
However, these are not the only upper hands given during our time of online learning.
University of Potomac compared online versus on-campus learning, only to find that students and teachers believe that online learning is just as good as traditional learning.
Additionally, the high percentage of about 67% of teachers believe that, whether online or in a traditional setting, video, blogs, podcasts, and other online media is a necessary teaching tool.
In the time of social distancing, it’s important to continue to familiarize students to the growing industry of communications technology.
This leaves a great chance for students to gain more studying skills and become more comfortable using technology that will only continue to grow.
One of the most salient foundations of learning is learning to adjust. If Long Beach City College continues to offer online learning to their students post-pandemic, they will be offering more than academics to the students.
The world will have more access to education from home, making it easier to handle daily life and continue to reach academic goals.