FEARING THE UNKNOWN…

 

FEARING THE UNKNOWN…

Since the very beginning of the mankind, we have fear the unknown- what is it, how does it affect us? etc. our first instinct while facing these things is always running away and this instinct has followed us through out the development of the mankind. Now, we are capable enough to roam the space, advance enough to search for things outside the solar system, yet most of us are still afraid of the unknown, of the thing that breaks the chain of a daily life of a mediocre family, of a new thing in our well maintained and documented life.

COVID-19 emerged as one of those unknown. We were and are still in dark about this virus despite our many attempts to understand it. And that unknown, still undiscovered part of the virus has forced the whole world to change their life as it was 2 years ago. Everything changed. So did the life cycle of the students. What once was their holy land of Macca is now just an empty room with benches and tables. Every small details of the education system had to be changed so that we can adopt to the new world.

While this change highlighted another human quality- ability to adopt, we had to loose the system which has existed from the early stages of humankind and unlike going away gradually, it went away unannounced, unnoticed, thereby creating a sudden void in the student life which the people under 20 had to fill all by themselves. What was brought in was a mode with little to no physical contact but with the ability to do much more- ONLINE CLASSES.

 

No one ever doubted the prowess of the online classes and its potential, but the problem was that internet has always been the source of the entertainment first then the source of education. Add to the fact that the student- teacher meeting became almost non-existent and the fear of being pointed out was ended by the excuse of ‘mic is not working’ and ‘network issue, sir’, we all have a very chaotic situation at hand.

Without physical contact, lack of interest showed up, leading to switching off the camera and doing other activities. This results in the lack of study, which results in the pressure of the assignments thereby affecting mental health and mood. Drop in concentration level has not only forced students to having difficulties to keep up with teachings but also making their mental state fragile. Hours of the screen views and the difficulty of the mind to process such a large amount of the information has coined a new English word- zoom fatigue. It results in eyesight problems and major headaches not only to the students but also to the teachers.

Classroom ethics has always been an essential factor for the personality development of the student. Their faults used to be pointed out by the teachers and they were taught how to behave in public places. But now, due to the unavailability of the offline classes, students have lost their way on how to behave in those situations, thereby lack in manners. It results in sitting inappropriately not straight, causing back pain. Study has also shown that online education has caused lack of vitamin D in students as they only sit in the room unlike walking in the sun.

So many problems, yet we are moving forward with this system. Why? Because, like every system in the world, this one is also not perfect. It has its own merits and demerits. We can pursue a course at our own speed instead of following a predetermined speed. Pursuing online classes are harder than offline- it shows that you manage your time well and are self-motivated, both are important traits of a good personality. Online classes force you to work with others, making you a more effective leader. You discuss with your classmates, communicate with your teachers and collaborate through various software program. This leads to improved virtual communication and collaboration.

You communicate with the peoples from all of the places, which helps you to get a broader, global perspective. This helps you to work with all types of people and also makes you culturally aware.

Overall, the education system took a massive turn during this pandemic situation, forcing us to adopt to the situation and become better than before. As a saying goes, “it is the intent, not the means, that matters”, it is up to us how to use the new way of education. We can’t just blame it for our shortcomings and feel guilt-free, because Charles Darwin has already proved that whenever the environment changes, it is always about the ‘survival of the fittest’ with the weaker being washed away. We just have to make sure that we are not one being washed off.