Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, many schools in the nation have implemented an online learning system for students. By doing this, students would have to complete assignments from their teachers on their own time before each deadline. Personally, there have been many advantages and disadvantages to this system.
Some of the advantages of this system were that students were given more time to participate in personal interests or hobbies. Typically, in a normal school day, many high school students have to complete homework after going to school for about seven hours. However, with the online learning system, students only have to work for about four hours each day, including both the classwork and homework. More specifically, I have had more time to spend with my family members. Throughout this stay-at-home order, my family and I were able to bake a lot of cakes and spend time watching films. Additionally, I had the opportunity to create and follow a more flexible schedule for my studies.
Some of the disadvantages included not being able to converse with other students and exchange ideas in class. During most classes, at least for the high school that I attend, we were given many opportunities to discuss ideas with one another and work on certain assignments together. Being able to learn from a classroom setting was also helpful because we were able to learn from the mistakes and questions of the entire class. However, with the online learning system, the learning of each student is more dependent on each individual’s effort in completing assignments. This requires a lot more self-control and time-management skills for many students.
Since all assignments were due at a specific time for my high school, students typically scheduled their assignments differently. Down below is the schedule that I followed to keep organized.
9:00AM: Waking up and eating breakfast
10:00AM: Beginning assignments for the day (when teachers post assignments)
12:00PM: Lunch Break
1:00PM: Continuing assignments and attending Zoom Conference meetings with teachers and students
4:00PM: Personal time/doing hobbies (baking, reading, etc.)
6:00PM: Practicing music
7:00PM: Eating dinner and spending time with family members
I think during this online learning system, I realized that I took a lot of things for granted: activities, teachers, friends, etc. I also realized that I had many people to be thankful for during this time period. I hope it will soon be safe to go back to school.
Discussion Questions:
Do you like or dislike online learning? Why?
What is your daily schedule like?
