Why distance learning can’t compare to in-person education

This is the new school reality. Students stare blankly at the screen as their teacher attempts to explain a new concept through Zoom, amongst a gallery of muted profiles. As they’re lecturing, teachers are hoping that their students are actively listening and engaged in the lesson. Sadly, there is no way to enforce this.

Distance learning is not an adequate substitute for in-person learning. There are many attributes of in-person learning that are vital for an effective education that distance learning simply cannot accommodate. There are too many limitations.

Without a global pandemic, procrastination is already one major vice students struggle with. Now, at home, there are a plethora of distractions that students must now face along with an urge to procrastinate. Learning remotely places a pressure and responsibility on students to suddenly have much more self-control. Additionally, the environments of distance versus in-person learning are very different and this factor holds distance learning back from being an adequate substitute for in-person learning. Without peer collaboration and student engagement, students cannot be expected to learn at the same rate that they would in a school environment. 

But isn’t distance learning teaching students how to handle college-level responsibility? Yes, but this responsibility is at a level that many high school students might not necessarily be ready for. Normally, as students move up a grade, responsibility slowly increases to the level of responsibility for college. Suddenly shifting to online schools forces a large level of responsibility and restraint onto students who aren’t truly ready, causing issues such as procrastination and a lack of motivation. And for some students, this excess responsibility is only worsening the struggles they are experiencing due to the COVID-19 lockdown. 

In contrast, some studies do show that online schooling can be beneficial. According to a study by Arizona State University, online schooling is implicated to have a higher retention rate of information. This, however, cannot apply if students are not paying attention and learning due to an inadequate environment and lack of motivation. Furthermore, while online school offers students more control of their schedule, there is a lack of regulation and incentive to keep students motivated to perform well. Additionally, having more control over one’s schedule often leads to irregular sleeping habits and work habits, lowering a student’s productivity.

Both procrastination and a lack of motivation can make it extremely difficult for students to properly absorb the necessary information for their classes; this paired with a credit/no credit grading system and a lack of standardized tests, many students find it hard to be motivated to keep up their studying. 

How the teachers approach online schooling impacts students. Many teachers have not trained for this transition to online schooling. There are few ways that a teacher can encourage engagement and participation through a computer screen. Teachers were trained to teach a physical classroom where they can assess whether or not their students grasp a subject and can conduct thoughtful discussions.  Peer collaboration is also lacking due to a lack of face-to-face interactions and differences in schedule. Online communication, despite teachers’ best efforts, cannot compare to real life communication. Video calls fall short compared to real conversations — they lack the body language and atmosphere that a real life conversation does. 

Science classes are also especially having a difficult time during this period of distance learning. How can a chemistry class perform experiments when students do not have the proper equipment and solutions? How can biology classes perform dissections when students don’t have the animals and equipment in front of them? Yes, there are online demonstrations but the experience and nuances are completely lost.

No one is at fault for schools having to transition to remote learning, but preparation is key for creating a better substitute for in-person learning.Many students and teachers, specifically in this era, have no prior experience with online schools. In the future, having more practice and training before adapting to online school may produce a better system of distance learning that could be comparable to in-person schooling.

We may want to follow the example of states which experience more severe weather that were generally better equipped with online school training. For example Pascack Valley High School in New Jersey has experience with online distance learning from past snowstorms. According to NJ Spotlight,  Pascack Valley’s director of curriculum and instruction, Barry Bachenheimer said,“We’re still as busy as ever with everything else, but there certainly is a feeling of familiarity to it. This is not our first rodeo.”

According to the Guardian’s interview with a panel of doctors, including Dr. Lee W Riley and Dr. Marc Lipsitch, there is a possibility that COVID-19 will return again in the fall. If this is true, then schools will need a flexible remote learning system that can adequately fulfill the needs for student education. As a result, we must prepare for a system of distance learning that can properly substitute and compare to in-person learning.