With second wave of COVID-19 hitting Pakistan, schools are preparing for another phase of lockdown and online learning. Pakistan’s education sector has been hit hard during the pandemic. Students have already been suffering from a major learning loss due to inefficiency of online classes and for majority of population, due to inaccessibility to any sort of education. We have already covered several aspects of online education during the pandemic with tips for online classes and perspective of high school students on remote learning. However, after been through phase once, there are several lessons learned by both teachers and students. which can be incorporated in online sessions to make remote learning work in Pakistan.
Tips by Homeschoolers & Educationists on Remote Learning
As we are preparing for second round of remote learning, there are many lessons that can be learned from homeschoolers around the globe. Similarly, educationists who have dealt with remote learning in Pakistan during phase one have now better understanding of how remote learning can be more effective. In case of most private schools in Pakistan, they are still going through hybrid sessions. Some of the tips that can be adopted by schools and shared by parents include the following:
– Negotiate about Spatial Conflict Beforehand
We all have heard how parents with more than 1 child have difficult time in managing personal space for each child where he/she can study in peace. Try to designate fixed spots in drawing rooms, bedrooms or any other available space for each child beforehand to avoid conflicts amongst them. Since not everyone can afford big or brightened spaces in house for study, try to switch places of children among themselves from time to time to avoid monotonous setting and mood. Ensure that space for study allows for better posture of student or take help of books etc. to keep computer or other devices at proper angle.
– Enhance Communication skills with students
Teachers have already put in a lot of hard work during the pandemic with managing both online and offline classes. With internet connectivity and accessibility issues in Pakistan, it is even harder to get every student on track with their studies. If classes go online again, teachers need to find a way to effectively utilize the tools at hand for better communication. Teachers can utilize the recording options in software like Zoom to record their lectures. Later they can upload them on class forums for students. Additionally, recorded sessions will make up greatly for the learning loss of students who are dealing with connectivity issues, devices unavailability or any other handicap. Lastly, teachers should always give feedback in class, on homework and overall progress to keep students active in their studies.
– Cut Down on Nuisance of Online Submission
Parents have been grumbling a great deal about the nuisance of online work. This refers to homework that has to be submitted after online class. This includes submission of homework online and other projects. Individual projects are a great step in encouraging offline learning for students. But daily homework submissions should be given a break as teachers and parents need to take things easy during the pandemic. Instead of submitting online work daily, students can participate more in class. Emphasis should be more on focus of students and dividing lectures into small important topics that can be retained. Try to give small class work instead and make students share screens which will be more indulging and attention grabbing than giving daily homework that both teachers and parents have to deal with after class.
– Don’t Let Kids Mute all the time during class
Muting oneself in a zoom meeting or google classroom is like disconnecting with everything. This is something that even adults can understand when in online meetings. Students need extra courage to enter a conversation when video and sound are muted during online classes. This is not natural setting and has affected confidence and social skills of students greatly. Moreover, it gives opportunities to students to engage in other activities than studies like games and videos online. Teachers should encourage keeping video or voice on during the classroom. This can make students feel like sitting in front of teacher and other classmates. Parents should try to arrange sitting arrangement on corners of room to make wall backgrounds. Video calls can be made by students with mute on to avoid background noise.
– Make children Participate and Interact in Class
One of the main complaints by most parents is that teachers are not paying attention to their child. Some children are just playing online games in front of screens while online session is in progress. One major reason for lack of interest of students is lack of interaction with their teacher and class fellows. Teachers should make the classes interactive by asking questions to individual students during the class. This can keep students attentive and on their toes. Moreover, surprise quizzes, short class assignments and reading out aloud can keep children more focused like in real classroom settings. Classes with interesting interactions between the participants can definitely make remote learning work in Pakistan.
– Support Independent Learning
As mentioned before, online submission of homework is a great nuisance for both teachers and parents. A more recommended approach is giving projects that students can handle independently on flexible schedule. Teachers can give tasks to research on specific topics, species, area and prepare points to tell in next online class. Teachers can ask students to make something practically and show in video call during the class. This will not only support independent learning but will also enhance students’ interest in classes and increase interaction between peers. Better participation of other students can instill the fear of missing out and encourage them to perform better.
