In person vs online learning: What do Penn State students prefer?
Penn State is back in-person for spring semester as COVID-19 cases in Pennsylvania rise; students have mixed feelings about it.
With the rise of covid cases being reported in the state of Pennsylvania (as well as the entire country) due to the Omicron variant, many students believed the spring ’22 semester would start remotely similar to the spring ’21 semester when in-person classes did not start until February.
The University of Pittsburgh announced on Dec. 30 that the spring ’22 semester will start remotely for the first two and a half weeks. On the same day, Penn State announced that they will “start the semester in person, as planned” via a news article on the school’s website and social media.
On instagram, students took to the comments their feelings about the decision. With over 200 comments, some students showed their support while others asked the school to wait two weeks.
On Dec. 17, the last day of finals for the fall semester, there were 8,629 new cases in Pennsylvania (according to the New York Times map and case count) On Jan. 10, the first day of classes for the spring, there were 29,857 new cases, which was triple the number.
Troy Lindey (junior-criminology) is spending this semester at home, taking his courses via zoom and asynchronous. He made this decision after he saw a drop in his grades. He says a big reason is the ongoing pandemic.
“It’s a big distraction for me,” said Lindey. “It really messes up with my focus on schoolwork and other things. When I’m at home doing online classes, I don’t have to worry about it as much and I can focus on my classes more and get my grades up. As much as I want to be with my boys, I think it’s the right call for me.”
Lindey says he does plan on returning for his senior year and hopes the pandemic and its effects have lessened by then.
Luke Merkovsky (junior-special education) prefers to be in-person rather than online via zoom.
“It’s easier [online] to get off task because no one is watching you,” said Merkovsky. “It’s easier to be lazy and just grab your computer, go on zoom then go to bed. In person I pay more attention.”
Merkovsky says in his experience teachers tend to make quizzes and tests open book more so online rather than in person. This semester, he has one class that is online.
Bryce Ingalls (junior-engineering) is a hardworking student who is “indifferent” when it comes to online vs in-person learning.
“Both have their pluses and minuses,” said Ingalls. “It’s just up to personal preference. With covid being around for almost two years now, it kind of feels normal. I’m cool with whatever the school decides.”
Ingalls is fully vaccinated and got his booster shot over winter break. He has had a few friends who have come down with covid within the first two weeks of the semester, but he hasn’t contracted the virus.
“I’ve been lucky,” said Ingalls.
As of Jan. 24, new covid cases in Pennsylvania have dropped to 9,331.
