It’s no surprise that “online learning” is something of a buzz-word these days. Although remote learning isn’t something that is considered new in the realm of technology, the instructional styles and sheer amount distance learning that was forced to emerge out of the pandemic have potentially changed the structure of the classroom setting permanently.
Throughout the various stages of the pandemic we endured an initial panic of the reality that nearly every school in the world would be affected by this virus, more or less turning the education system on its back in an effort to keep the flow of the process alive. What followed was a progression of in-person and online learning as we navigated the surges of the new waves and varying strains of Covid over the course of two years. The end result is what we now consider a “HyFlex Model”, in which students have the option to attend either online or in person.
Granted the flexibilities and learning possibilities that have emerged out of this turmoil have certainly continued to breath life into our ongoing education system, they are also likely to shift the expectations of students and educators long-term. I believe that interaction in its physical form is a key tenet in the learning process for the sake of practicality in addition to following the psychological principles of our nature as social creatures. Isolating ourselves from one another will only birth its own issues, and given that social anxiety is already becoming more prevalent with this generation of young learners, the best thing we could offer them is at least some continued exposure with human, face-to-face communication and interaction.
We need to tread lightly with these new strategies and technologies. Like any tool they have a valuable role to play for the job at hand, but they also pose a risk of being gravely misused and doing irreparable damage to the future of our learners and educators.
For a deep dive into the post-covid era of education, please click the link to the article below
https://www.nature.com/articles/s41928-020-00534-0