Online Learning Tools
Written by Jamie Rebugio — November 25,2020
If accuracy was measured by the phrase, “History repeats itself,” then it shouldn’t have come as a surprise to any when the Department of Education refused to accept the 360,000 and mounting petitions for #AcademicFreeze (Bernardo, 2020).
To mirror, the decade between 1920–1929 was stylized as these years, “began with a roar and ended with a crash,” as well as, “one of learning and exploration,” by Silverstein (2007). Yet even before the pandemic, statistics (CHED, n.d.) have proven that there has always been an inconsistency in implementing an effective curriculum — A.Y. 2017–2018 produced about 796,712 graduates out of 2,981,803 enrollees which was followed by a 1.2% decrease in graduates from batch 2019–2020.
While The Inquirer (Ramos, 2020) reported that there were more than 23 million enrollees for A.Y. 2020–2021, the total does not come with the assurance that students would know how to go about behaving in online classes. This new educational landscape pressed upon learners, instructors, and parents alike is constantly followed by uproars on social media.
For most, Asynchronous Course Delivery is a learning style that has been practiced for a long time but never properly introduced (Abisado, 2020, p. 417); it may come across to others as “self-studying,” or “independent learning,” because accompanied by this approach is a limited collaboration between instructors and enrollees.
Various institutions have emphasized that the key towards an attentive class is preparation.
Even though Castillo, Jr., (2020) argued the point that independent learners, “will have control over their own schedules in an otherwise unpredictable time,” many administrations have overlooked the struggle attached to the multitask of managing self-discipline, time and stress; on top of the lessons, deadlines, and requirements that is expected from students.
The feeling that comes with being overwhelmed from all of the presented resources is misplaced attention (Hakala, 2015) and when students’ focus are faulty, it would be easy to overlook high-key features that distinguish one medium from another. Since this year’s batch has been newly introduced to virtual classrooms, it is possible that all the tools and platforms used by instructors would begin to look the same to students.
Kokemuller (n.d.) calls this “The Snowball Effect,” where he addressed that the unpreparedness felt by students would lead to heightened anxiety, causing output to “ perpetuate academic troubles.” He advised that setting an expectation for the learning experience would “build positive momentum,” and produce a more steady and successful study environment.
Learners can produce the best results by preparing for the worst scenarios.
Utilizing the advantages our current generation has over online resilience is key to orienting one’s efforts in maintaining focus while working to achieve goals. In this case, listed below are some suggested applications that can help learners redirect their attention back to classes, as well as making use of a healthier outlook towards their spent screen-time:
For Task Organization
Students are expected to retain information from a handful of courses. The applications mentioned below focal aim is to help learners organize assigned tasks, homework, and any related school activities.
For Time Management
Given that students are free to customize their schedules and calendars depending on the allotted course requirements; learning style; and their availability, it is necessary for them to keep track of where their efforts are applied and when they should reorient their screen-time related energy.
For Collaborative Purposes
Aside from group-related work, students also have to maintain and strengthen the connections they have with their fellow classmates, despite learning from home. Listed are applications that function best as a collaborative platform among multiple users.
All applications that were mentioned are easily downloadable and available to use across multiple devices (e.g. mobile phones, laptops, desktops).
In the past, Western culture took an unprecedented turn for the future when the installment of the radio was implemented across 26,000,000 households in America (“Radio: A Consumer Product and a Product of Consumption,” n.d., p.2). These radio frequencies came as a signal that modern technology would take off and change the information exchange system for the near future (Stefanyshyn and Kendell, 2012).
Provided that the 23 million enrollees are made aware and prepared for the ever-changing treatment in education, the shift towards online learning may ignite a generation more resilient than of those who came before — scraping the old, traditional system through discovery and unforeseen explorations — as batches of students would finally roar at the thrill of having the opportunity to shape their future.
