It felt very apt that I was unable to attend the class on distributed learning in person but was required to call in via Zoom – very much a first-hand learning experience.
There were a few of us that had to attend online, and during the class discussion it was a little hard to participate, so we each spent the time doing personal reflection on the discussion prompts, which I thought I would share here.
The worst part about learning online is…
From my experiences with online learning (I was lucky enough to graduate just as the pandemic started, but I did my grade 9 year online as well), I have two main grievances. First, I found it difficult at times to get myself motivated when I was just sitting at home on my laptop – I really like school, and a lot of what I enjoy is being able to move around and change locations and experience different teaching styles and some of the spontaneity that comes from all of us being together in a room. Also, much of my online learning experience was asynchronous and self-paced, which for me was the perfect combination for low motivation.
The best part about learning online is…
…exactly what happened in this class! Even though a few of us were unable to attend class in person for various reasons, we didn’t have to miss out entirely. Online learning provides an avenue of access that has the ability to open up so many doors.
The pandemic has shown us that online learning…
…and online teaching require their own sets of skills.
…should, in some arenas, be here to stay.
…is not for everyone.