In my eyes, remote learning is a great tool for students who may not be able to attend class full time. Otherwise, unless there are accessibility issues, I believe remote learning to be a lackluster form of teaching. I say this because in all my personal experiences with remote learning, I’ve consistently been left disappointed with the methods used. Simply put, remote learning is often rushed, confusing and just as frustrating for the teacher as it is for the students.
My biggest gripe with online learning stems from the true lack of human connection. To me, it all just seems so fake. In many cases, content in remote learning is posted on an application, such as google classroom, and that is all. It is nothing more than words on a screen telling you what to do. There is no hook, there is no intrigue. It is simply a task you are expected to do. How can one be expected to effectively learn, if all they are provided is a task? To me, the most effective learning occurs when a teacher is motivating and passionate about the topic at hand. As this mentality translates to the students and they to become motivated/passionate about their work. Remote learning kills this passion and instead makes students into nothing more than robots completing their task because they have to.
You may say “well what about content delivered through Zoom, isn’t that a human connection?”. To that I say, tell me on time where you truly felt you were having an effective learning experience through Zoom? Sure, some of you may have an answer, but I bet the vast majority of you hate Zoom just as much as I do. It is just so boring and lifeless to stare at the screen for hours on end. There is no enjoyment to be gained from that. It only highlights how truly boring school can be. Not to mention most people didn’t even show up for their meetings and if they did, they likely turned off their camera and did another activity with the teacher none the wiser.
To conclude, yes, remote learning is an extremely useful tool for students with accessibility issues. Nor am I denying the importance of remote learning. What I am stating is that for students with non accessibility issues, remote learning is a lifeless and soul crushing process that provides little to no actual benefit to the student, besides getting to lay in bed all day.
Picture Credits: My photo
