How has the pandemic impacted students?

When it comes to education, interrupted study programs has been the main issue, despite the adoption of online learning methods.

By ER. Aditya Kumar (B. Tech)

Global studies have shown that youngsters are struggling to cope with the varied challenges thrown up as a result of the pandemic. Anxiety, elevated stress levels and depression have been cited as some problems.

When it comes to education, interrupted study programs has been the main issue, despite the adoption of online learning methods.

Asian Student Girl Video Conference E-learning With Teacher On Computer In Living Room At Home. E-learning ,online ,education And Stock Photo - Image of headphones, exam: 187311780

Academic insufficiency

With online learning being the mode since March 2020, both teachers and students have been experiencing difficulties due to connectivity issues. For economically-challenged students, the lack of access to devices is another problem. This means that, despite a teacher’s best efforts, the question of how many students they reached remains. Also, innovative and exploratory models of assessment and evaluation would not have been possible during this time. Dealing with this requires a great deal of self-learning by students.

Emotional instability

Over the past year and a half, many students have had to deal with the loss of loved ones. While philanthropists and the governments have come forward to help them continue their education, the trauma of the loss has also to be dealt with.

In the case of those whose parents have lost their jobs, there is a lot of stress due to having to find funds to pay the fees.

A third aspect is that having to complete their education virtually has led to an emotional strain and worry about placements.

This year has also seen many students worry about falling victim to the virus.

New education session: Online studies in colleges even in the new session, Ravi started classes - Gyan24hrs

No escaping politics

The present public health crisis means that government competence is daily in question. In Scotland, the question of independence looms particularly large. This adds a distinctive twist to comparison of governments’ performance north and south of the border.

Because we’re in a civil emergency that’s regulated by the use of exceptional legal measures, some journalists thought that the ‘wartime’ atmosphere was having a chilling effect. They worried about their ability to pose tough questions to the UK’s different governments. Others thought that the UK’s nationalistic atmosphere had narrowed the agenda. We had not learned from successful pandemic management in countries such as Australia, South Korea and New Zealand. Moreover, during an emergency, questioning the NHS’s shortcomings was largely taboo.

Our discussion took place well after the UK’s vaccination program had begun to make a serious impact. Journalists wanted to focus on the early stages of the crisis, when weak border controls and the scandal over care-home deaths were hard to pursue effectively. The under-performance of the test-and-trace system was also discussed. These, it was felt, had all set the stage.

No public gathering

Youth often like to ‘chill’ at beaches, malls, theaters, parks and common places, but this is now prohibited for their safety. Neither can they gather in other public places like places of worship, which may have offered some measure of solace.

This has led to a lack of fellowship and social structure. Unfortunately, students are now glued to laptops or mobile phones for hours and their social life is also virtual.

While this situation was unexpected and no one is sure when a degree of normalcy will be restored, it is important for us to address these issues so that the youth can come through to the other side without too much ado.

Thank You For Reading.