Online School: Good or Bad?

Online learning was existent, but not yet prevalent before COVID-19 pandemic. COVID-19 affected a lot of students through the shift to remote learning, causing students to learn less and negatively affect their mental health and extracurricular activities.  A junior at William Henry Harrison High School stated, “COVID changed the way I viewed online schooling. Due to all the damage COVID caused, online school was ruined for me. I wasn’t able to learn as well as I did while in-person. I am still being affected by this as I do not remember most of what we learned end of sixth grade through seventh grade.” Big gaps in learning aren’t unique to this student, and the world of education has been trying to close the “COVID gaps” for the last five years. In addition to the academic learning loss, the social cost on kids was bad. Students weren’t able to socialize with their friends and were alone all day which drastically affected their mental health. 

While we are back in school now, there are still elements of online learning in our school district. When students fail a graduation required class, they are placed in credit recovery, which uses a common online learning platform online program called Edgenuity. Many students dislike Edgenuity becasue it has a repetitive format which gets boring. You can only watch so many videos and answering so many questions before it is just too much. It has a lack of engagement and has potential for rushed learning. Many students feel pressured to rush through courses, completing multiple assignments in a short period of time. Students believe it has a lack of interactivity and generic tone which makes students lose motivation. 

Despite negative opinions on online learning, there are also benefits. Because of this, in addition to Edgenuity for credit recovery, Harrison High School now offers an entirely online option for its students. Online school can offer a flexible schedule, allowing students to work at their own pace, giving them more time to work on subjects they find challenging. A sophomore at WHHHS explained, “Online learning is much easier than in person schooling, meaning that is it easier to pass the class, and you have more discretionary time. However, I would argue that you learn about a tenth online of what you would learn in person.” At home you can create a study environment that works for you without the distractions of a traditional classroom. Online school can cater to your learning style, offering resources like videos, interactive tools, and other methods you might find more effective than traditional textbooks and lectures. The traditional school environment can be stressful due to peer pressure, social interactions, and strict schedules. Online school gives you a calmer, more controlled environment to focus on your education. You could prioritize a healthier routine, including better sleep, regular exercise, and healthier meals which could be challenging to manage with a traditional school schedule.

Online school has changed a lot over the years since COVID-19. During 2020, online school was very stressful for students and affected their mental health, but now online school offers a lot of advantages in order to help students learn at their own pace.