I, like a lot of other people, began my first year of university this September. Unfortunately, however, this experience has turned virtual due to the circumstances of 2020. Although experiencing my first year of university on the world wide web has many downfalls and immediate red flags, this is my one great attempt at looking at some of the benefits of it... but not without looking at the rage-inducing FLAWS, too.
THE CONS
We will start with the bad, just to get them out of the way. Yes, immediately, there are a lot of major problems with online university.
YOU ARE LITERALLY ALONE IN YOUR ROOM ALL DAY.
You are alone, with only a screen for company. Of course, there are ways to make online school less lonely, for example, going to a coffee shop or library to study with a friend. But, most of the time, you are just alone with your thoughts and your laptop, questioning reality.
IT IS INCREDIBLY HARD FINDING MOTIVATION TO START WATCHING YOUR LECTURES OR STUDY.
Like, there are probably fifty things that are more entertaining to do in your near vicinity. Your kitchen is three seconds away, every book you own is right in front of you, TikTok exists, your Nintendo Switch is literally on the table to your left, and you are ON YOUR BED, so good luck.
IT IS ALSO EXTREMELY EASY TO CONVINCE YOURSELF YOU ARE NOT EVEN IN SCHOOL, BECAUSE IT IS NEVER SHOVED IN YOUR FACE; IT IS ALL UP TO YOU TO STAY ON TOP OF EVERYTHING.
Like some days I will wake up and tell myself it's the weekend even though it isn't and do nothing for online school and there is absolutely no consequence other than the fact I have to catch up more the next day. But seriously. If you just took two weeks off from school and lived in denial there would be no teacher screaming at you, no classmates wondering where the hell you went, you would just disappear off the face of the Earth and no one would question a thing.
IT IS EXTREMELY EASY TO ZONE OUT AND DO NOTHING BECAUSE YOUR PROFESSOR CAN'T EVEN SEE IF YOU ARE ASLEEP.
My teacher does not make me turn on the camera, so I can literally be in a different dimension when I am in that class and he would have no idea. I don't even have to be in the same country. I could walk and take a forty-five-minute bathroom break and nothing is going to happen. I can be completely asleep at my desk and he won't wake me up. I can be chewing my food louder than the noise at a rock concert and nobody would complain (as long as my mic is off). So how in the world am I gonna be able to sit around for an hour straight just staring at my screen actually FOCUSED and PRESENT? I don't think I know what those words mean anymore.
YOU CANNOT COMMUNICATE WITH YOUR CLASSMATES IN REAL LIFE.
I am horrible at texting people or creating friendships online, so basically I have absolutely nothing to do with my classmates. I know some people who are putting more energy into establishing connections with their classmates but I am failing at this aspect. I do not flourish when it comes to online friendships. How does it work? I don't even know what half of these people look like.
THE PROS
Now here are the pros, that for me are not always obvious, but I think it's always great to look on the bright side of things. So here are the silver linings of online classes, all layed out.
YOU CAN ALWAYS BE SNACKING AND YOU CAN ALWAYS HAVE ACCESS TO FOOD, PLUS NOBODY IN YOUR CLASS CAN JUDGE YOU FOR IT.
Your kitchen is three seconds away. You don't have to wait till after class to get a snack. You just WALK THERE and you have arrived in two seconds. It's empowering.
HAVE AN EXTREMELY BORING AND SLOW-SPEAKING PROFESSOR?
YOU CAN SPEED UP ALL YOUR LECTURES 2X AND GET THROUGH YOUR HOUR LONG LECTURE IN HALF THE TIME.
For my classes that are pre-recorded, I can easily change the playback speed of the lectures so that they are 1.5, 1.75, or even 2 times the speed. This has both saved me from a lot of wasted time and a lot of boredom. This is a feature that would definitely not be available when it comes to in-person classes.
YOU CAN STAY IN BED WITH A CANDLE, PAJAMAS, A HEATED BLANKET, AND MUSIC.
When it comes to comfort, online university at least has THAT to boast about. You can have a ton of pillows and be all warm and cozy with a cup of tea or whatever suits you at that moment. It's truly glorious.
So overall, yes, there are both pros and cons to online school. It's been a really difficult experience adjusting to it, so if you are in the same boat as me, I send you my prayers and hopefully together we can get through this-- cuz I know we WILL get through it!!
I still think there’s a lot more cons