COVID-19 has caused a tremendous amount of change in all aspects of life and education is no exception. While almost more than 1.2 billion children in 186 countries are affected by school closures due to the pandemic, we are indeed lucky that Singapore is not one of those countries that had to go on a complete lockdown and we named the pause to our work as a “circuit breaker”. 

This has also become the time when online learning in Singapore through online tuition has raised in prominence and students are seeking further ways to compensate for what they think is a loss because of a lack of traditional classroom setting. 

Online learning has become the primary way of education for students today and this way of learning has become one that everyone has got to get used to. Students have their own way of studying and revising. They attend lessons online and the learning trends vary between each and every one of them. Online students often think that their learning resources will be delivered via email. Most online institutions are moving away from this unreliable method of delivery.

So, how do students handle online learning their own way during this pandemic? Let’s have a look at those!

Table of Content

• Beyond Textbooks
• Online Tuition
• Get a Complete Child Support System

Bottom Line

Online Learning Trends Dring COVID-19 Pandemic

AT YOUR OWN PACE

The biggest advantage that students seem to have is being able to revisit topics, review the lecture material again and again at their own time and be able to clarify doubts with their online tutors at their discretion. 

With traditional classroom learning, it is inevitable that the teachers go through a topic at a standardised pace; not too slow, nor too fast. If they are in a race against time to finish off the syllabus before examinations). 

In schools, for fast-paced learners, teachers’ pace of teaching may seem slow and they get bored out. This may give them a laid-back attitude. They may miss out on the nitty-gritty details or important pieces of information. A sense of complacency never does any good in learning. 

On the other hand, for slow-paced learners, if the tutor’s speed in teaching seems too fast for them to follow, they may feel lagged behind, and moreover when they see their peers being able to keep up, it takes a huge toll on self-confidence. This adversely affects their entire learning process.

With online learning, students are given the liberty to learn at their own pace and it benefits them all!

• Beyond Textbooks

A transition in learning style is imperative and perhaps this pandemic has made it happen. Students have always been stuck in a cycle of highlighting key words in textbooks and answering questions in exam papers according to what answer keys expect (each key word is allocated ½ marks).

Learning is not about answering questions in exam papers; it’s about gaining knowledge in a meaningful way. Education should widen a student’s horizon and provoke his thoughts; it should not encourage him to bury his head in the books all day. 

With online learning, there is a myriad of resources in the digital space and access to them is not a difficult task. It is also convenient for tutors to cross-reference to other sources and expand their scope of teaching by giving various perspectives to students as well as introducing other theories or concepts related to what they are learning. 

It is indeed a great way to learn in a holistic manner as opposed to being stuck in the wordings and examples given in the textbooks. 

• Online Tuition

Online tuition has gained significant attention since the beginning of the pandemic and many students can now vouch for the effectiveness of online tuition in boosting exam grades. Apart from the fact that online tutors are getting new tuition assignments (so it is a great time to become an online tutor), students are also discovering the benefits of online tuition during this challenging time. 

Online work is more engaging as it allows the student to interact with the material; there are tools that allow visual and theoretical understanding of concepts, which is useful in certain subjects. As a result there is more motivation to learn.

Online tutors are indeed saviours at this point in time as since education is shifted into a digital platform, students may seem a little lost and helpless as they may be a little unaware of how to handle the change. 

Though there isn’t the physical presence of the tutor, this is not a huge factor that could possibly compromise the quality of teaching. The same amount of discipline is expected of students and the same amount of hard work needs to be put in, in order to excel in studies. 

• Get a Complete Child Support System

With the rise of online learning platforms, the whole education ecosystem comes together under one roof, ensuring learners grab as much as they want. With this new online trend, both educators and learners get free access. Educators help the students in getting books, resources, and materials by assisting them in grabbing various opportunities in great numbers. 

This isn’t only a school education system platform but a complete child support system that helps in providing free services. With the availability of several largest e-learning platforms, everyone can get a free course in achieving the desired grades and career. Hence, it’ll reduce the risk of coronavirus infection.

The online education industry has gained great momentum in meeting the current demand. As more and more learners are looking for online courses, this trend will continue even after the world is getting over the current situation. 

Bottom Line

There is no fixed way of learning and there is no right or wrong. There is no need to draw a line around us and fix ourselves in a circle; it is the right time now to explore more ways to learn innovatively. 

With various educators shifting to the digital platform (ex. Dr.Najeeb’s lectures, Armando Hasudungan’s YouTube channel, Ninja Nerds, etc.), students have more ways to learn and the pandemic isn’t necessarily a bane; it is indeed a boon that has opened our eyes to a whole lot of possibilities.