Online Learning – A future of Education
By Roopam Singh
The pandemic has brought about a major shift in how people are approaching life. Teaching and learning online are the need of the hour. Schools, colleges and other organizations have been forced to take education online as a serious alternative which might even become the way of the future. Teachers and students alike are embracing technology in online classes in all subjects successfully. In most likelihood, online classes will become a part of the overall activity of all institutions worldwide.
Education online is a blessing in disguise. While teaching and learning online might become the way of the future for optional subjects and added professional skills, traditional schools and to a lesser extent colleges will remain as they are with online options. There has been an upsurge in activity for most online institutes and universities while experts in different subjects are freelancing with students of all levels on platforms like Zoom, BlueJeans and other applications.
The tuition and coaching market is also largely thriving on online, video and telephone classes. Not only do students want to maintain social distancing, but also online classes offer comfort and convenience. It is important to not venture into big groups of people and choose small online groups where the level of concentration on each student is higher. Teaching online is lucrative and learning online is cost-effective. It will be difficult to break the equation even after the risk of contracting Corona is gone.
The other dimension to this is that students in small cities and towns can get access to a higher quality of education than before. Sitting in Jabalpur, you can learn online from an experienced teacher in New Delhi, Kolkata or Mumbai. Similarly, a student in Toronto or Dubai can learn for cheaper from highly qualified teachers in Chennai, Bangalore or Chandigarh. The geographical boundary does not matter anymore and online education is here to stay.
Take the case of learning languages online. While all top tier institutes are offering online classes for big groups, students and even companies are opting to work directly with qualified and experienced teachers online in solo classes or small groups. If we look at French, a language that is highly in demand in India and other parts of the globe, online teaching and learning has overtaken all other alternatives. Teachers are in high demand and students are doing all their learning online. The teacher-student relationship is better. The level of focus is higher on both sides and lessons are more individualized.
All this points towards a revolution in education online. Both teaching and learning online hitting a new paradigm. This is a welcome change which is here to stay and will not fade with the pandemic as some people might expect.
The writer has two decades of experience in journalism and French language training in India, France and Bangladesh. She gives online classes and can be reached on 9501253056 or [email protected].