Enlight21

Author: Ethan Matsuda | Category: Education | Date: 07-21-2020

Covid-19 has plagued 2020, forcing us to stay home and away from others. It has had an immense impact on the day-to-day lives for all, ranging from newborn babies all the way to senior citizens. Students especially have had a hard time adjusting to their new way of life. With distance learning put into place by schools across the world, students have had to figure out how to be productive and learn while on their own. While this was no easy task, there were both pros and cons to this unique situation. On the one hand, distance learning gave students more free time on their hands to focus on other projects outside of school. However, on the other hand, it also left many students falling behind and ultimately not learning the curriculum. Personally, I believe the cons slightly outweigh pros in this situation, because as a high school student myself, I felt myself falling behind in my classes and ultimately losing interest in school altogether.

When distance learning was first put into place mid-March, we all thought it would only be a temporary arrangement, which I believe is what it was meant to be. Distance learning meant that kids would have to do all their work online, which in theory doesn’t sound so bad as long as all students have access to a computer and the internet. However when put into place over a long period of time, distance learning left many kids feeling disconnected and unmotivated to do their work. The absence of a teacher and a structured schedule left students like me drawing away from school. Being at home 24/7 with no classes to attend to or tests to study for, I began to feel like I was on summer break rather than in school. Playing video games with my friends and watching Netflix became my new normal, and by the end of April, I had completely checked out of school. The coronavirus outbreak was extremely devastating to many students just like me, who couldn’t find the motivation to do their schoolwork and maintain a strong work ethic without the proper guidance of a teacher and the structure of a set schedule. One thing, however, that I believe could help with this issue is the use of a set schedule of online zoom classes. I know many of my friends had online zoom classes occasionally, but me personally, I never had a single zoom class during all of distance learning. I believe that this would help many students understand the material better, encourage them to do their work, and remind them that they are still in school. It would fix both the problems of not having a teacher and not having a set schedule which I believe are necessary for me to succeed in school. Overall, there were many problems with distance learning this past year, but I believe that with the implementation of a set schedule of zoom classes, these problems can be alleviated.

While there were many downsides to distance learning, I also felt as if there were almost as many upsides. Staying at home allowed me to focus on my hobbies outside of school. While at home, I learned how to string a lacrosse head, helped found two clubs at my school, and interned at an online camp where I taught kids how to code. With distance learning in place, it gave me all this extra time to pursue these goals that I had wanted to accomplish for so long now. Aside from this, distance learning also took a huge weight off my shoulders and relieved me of my stress. Without the worry of acing all my classes, my stress levels went way down and I could feel my overall mood rise as well. Being at home has done a lot for improving my mental health and has also provided me the opportunity to pursue many of my passions that I wouldn’t have normally had time to do.

Overall I believe that there are both many pros and cons to distance learning. It was definitely harder for me to learn, and stay motivated to do my homework while at home this past semester, but I believe that if all teachers implemented daily zoom classes, this would help fix both these problems. Distance learning this past semester also allowed me to pursue many of my passions outside of school and helped improve my mental health as well. Without the worry of acing all my classes, my stress levels went way down and it also gave me the much needed time I needed to relax and start working towards some of my other goals. For me, I felt as if in this past semester there were more downsides to distance learning than upsides, however, with some slight adjustments, I believe that distance learning can become really successful and helpful to students in the future.

About: Ethan Matsuda