Education in the corona times

The coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic has caused an unprecedented crisis in all areas. In the field of education, this emergency has led to the massive closure of face-to-face activities of educational institutions in more than 190 countries to prevent the spread of the virus and mitigate its impact.

Covid-19 has forced universities across India, and the world indeed, to suspend physical classrooms and shift to online classes. In India, while this transition has been smooth for most private universities, the public ones are still adapting. There have also been debates on the nature of classes, and the future of examination and evaluation — whether they could be conducted online or not.

While faculty grapples with new ways of managing this sudden transition to online education, students are left clinging to their mobile phones and computer screens. If the lockdowns were to continue for some time, how would higher education be affected? What are some of the deeper issues that require introspection? And what does this mean for the students going forward?

 

 

                                              Online education for students

Advantages:

* The ability to learn using different online tools and methods

* No disruption in learning because of the pandemic

* Listening to recorded and live conversations and working at their speed

Disadvantages:

* Lack of free-flowing conversations, debates, and discussions

* Technological difficulties related to weak devices or access to the internet

* Getting used to learning and being evaluated online

* Studying while living at home, with family and other distractions

 

Online education for teachers

Advantages:

* Allows innovative methods of teaching with the help of technology and online tools

* Allows reaching out to a large number of students across geographies

* Especially useful for distance learning

Disadvantages:

* Online teaching takes time and practice

* There is little consensus on how students can be evaluated in a fair manner

* Inability to have a face-to-face connection with students and facilitate free conversations, discussions, and mentoring

* Inability to reach all students because of technological limitations