Four Tips For A Successful Distance Learning Experience
It’s safe to say that employees are not the only ones stuck with strict limitations during the pandemic. Students, teachers, and the education community are too. Facing the new normal, students especially report that they’ve struggled with implementing online learning, and doing so from home can become very boring yet stressful.
Through a webinar discussion live-streamed on YouTube, brought to the audience by a partnership between Ruangguru and BNI, representatives from each entity talked about fun and effective distance-learning activities students, teachers, and parents can implement.
During the webinar, Nastassia, Ruangguru’s Educational Content Manager, highlighted the potentially irreversible and fundamental effects the “drastic change” COVID-19 has brought on students’ studying behaviors.
“With 99 percent of the world’s children living with restrictions on movement, they grow to have no sense of structure and stimulation that is provided by schools and other social gatherings, for a good mental well-being,” Nastassia said.
The current situation underlines the need for parents and other adults in the house to repeatedly express, explain, and emphasize the new realities and support children to get through them, Nastassia added.
In this piece, we summarize tips Nastassia and Angela, Ruangguru’s Partnership Lead, shared during the Ruangguru x BNI webinar, about gradually creating a stress-free learning environment at home.
1. Create A “Class” At Home
In this new normal, students learn from home with limited social interactions with friends and teachers especially. So, parents should create a comfortable atmosphere at home and readjust communications channels.
Try adding a few plants in a designated “classroom” at home, or turn the child’s bedroom into an effective learning space with proper chairs and a desk.
Facilitate students to interact with their friends and teachers online as well. Leverage easy-to-use platforms that allow both you and your child to communicate with friends and teachers, such as Ruangguru’s ruangkelas, an online free learning management system with a built-in chat feature to streamline communications.
2. Identify Effective Learning Methods
Every student has their own preferred learning methods. This new normal also allows students to explore the most effective learning styles for them. If they know already, they can freely learn using the method that works best for them.
There’s a shift in learning here; from a “one size fits all” to “individualized differentiated learning.”
“Visual learners can watch our detailed animated videos in ruangbelajar, sensory learners can now play with our interactive and gamified early primary school videos, auditory learners could also participate in our live teaching sessions, etc,” Nastassia said, mentioning some of the different features in the Ruangguru application.
3. Set A Schedule
Being busy at home sometimes leads to being busy without limits and separations. For students who are familiar with waking up at a certain time early in the morning, an hour of recess midday, and being on the road in the afternoon, the absence of a scheduled activity may be confusing.
One way to normalize learning from home in the new pliable normal is to create a schedule that mimics a child’s normal schedule. If they used to wake up at 7 for school and take snack breaks at noon, then do so, even if school is at home.
“Education is not a marathon. Take breaks, and make a routine,” Nastassia added.
4. Stay Healthy
Even though students are studying from home, maintaining good health remains crucial.
Two of the simplest things are drinking water often and exercising.
- Prepare a water bottle on the study desk so a child will be reminded to take a sip every once in a while.
- Make time to stretch, take a walk or go for a jog, and move your body. Studying at home means students are not as mobile as they used to be. So, purposefully doing activities that force them to move is important.
We hope these tips will help you navigate the challenges of distance learning from home. Whether you are a parent, an adult in the house, a guardian of young students, or someone who cares about creating a positive, enjoyable, and effective learning environment, the tips listed above are worth the try.
What are some of your proven tricks? Let us know in the comments below.
