Back to (online) school: Thoughts on online learning

oomerBy Joshua Corcuera

 

As you read this article, take note that I’m on my third week of online classes and it’s quite exhausting. Despite staying at home and enjoying the privilege of having a laptop (though internet connection is slow), both my mind and body find itself in a wearisome state. And I believe I won’t be the only one, as more students find it difficult to access online learning due to a lack of equipment and poor internet connection, among other factors.

The first two weeks of online classes were like hell week

The term hell week is known to each and every student especially among those at high school and those attending university. For those who do not know, this term is used by students during busy times of the academic year — usually exam week. I remember during my high school days, students filled the library during break time reviewing important notes before sitting down to the periodic test. And even now in college, the immense difficulty and weight of subjects cause even the smartest and most brilliant students to study even harder. Clearly, hell week is exhausting for students and it usually occurs in the middle or near the end of the semester.

As some college students go back to class last August 24, professors and students alike resort to online classes — meeting one another through a video conferencing app, teachers sending modules, and students answering online quizzes. On a personal perspective — which is shared by other students as well — the first week alone is already tiresome. It’s so exhausting that I thought it was already hell week, and I’m not exaggerating. Possibly, it’s because of how difficult it is to understand what the professor’s saying. Also, students like me cannot feel the ambiance and atmosphere of learning that we were used to. And the enormity of tasks, modules, and readings sent to students — some without clear instruction on what to do — would add to the vast burden of the learner’s suffering.

Make sure that no child is truly left behind

Prior to the resumption of classes, various student groups pushed for a temporary academic freeze, and ultimately, the safe resumption of face-to-face classes by calling out the shortcomings of the government in responding to the pandemic. One cannot blame students as they worry online classes would do more harm than good as schools still collect tuition for education that seems to be more like self-study. Moreover, they warned that immediately pushing for online classes could be detrimental to mental health as stress and anxiety affect marginalized students. Furthermore, learners and educators alike could put their lives at risk in pursuing or searching for ways to attend online classes. They were right.

In Capiz last May, a student died in a road accident after searching for an internet signal to comply with course requirements. Even teachers were not exempted from enormous difficulties and struggles. In Ilocos, last June, a teacher went up to the mountains in search of an internet connection so that he can enroll students who are suffering from connectivity issues. While in Mindoro, this August, a group of teachers crossed a river with the help of a payloader so that learning modules would be delivered to Mangyan students.

Online learning clearly revealed the existing enormous problems plaguing Philippine society. This pandemic which forced classes to continue online is not the cause of inequality in learning access — it revealed the already existing inequality in learning between the rich and the poor. And when things go back to normal, we should not return to the way things were. Rather, we should improve the society we are living in and make sure that no child is truly left behind.