Dr. Karen Strassler’s article, “What We Lose When We Go from the Classroom to Zoom”, outlines the consequences of Covid-19 on higher education by describing how the classroom has shifted over time to an online learning environment. This change, she argues, has arguably diminished the quality of education that students across the US are receiving. 

She says, “Each type of classroom presents different challenges and pleasures, but they all have one thing in common. In these classrooms, students meet one another as apparent equals,” (Strassler, 2020). By utilizing new technologies, this is no longer the case. Specifically, synchronous learning is nearly impossible with large classes. Even though the measures taken have been necessary, she says, “… we have lost our classrooms and, I fear, something vital along with them,” (Strassler, 2020). 

For centuries the classroom has been the optimal learning environment. Students from all backgrounds could gather together as fellow classmates, learning under their professor’s guidance. But by eliminating this space, it is impossible to unite in the same way. Despite discussion forums and Zoom meetings, the quality of education will never be the same: the interactions become impersonal and detached. Anyone who has written in one of these discussion posts understands this fact precisely. Students’ interactions are reduced into two hundred words, at most, instead of a substantial, continual dialog across multiple class sessions. 

For those who have received a sub-optimal high school education, online courses offer new challenges in need of a solution. In a small, traditional classroom setting, a student who has a question about the lecture can ask the professor for additional help through academic intervention or some kind of tutoring. But when the same situation arises online, it may take several hours for this same conversation to transpire. While awaiting an answer, the student may forget the issue and give up entirely.

In Ohio the College Credit Plus program gives students the opportunity to participate in college-level courses in high school. As such, students who take advantage of this program benefit dually, by earning high school and college credit for free, increasing standardized test scores and GPA’s overall . States that do not offer similar opportunities fall behind those that do.

Relating to this issue, Dr. Strassler says, “It’s painfully obvious that only some of my students benefited from a strong high school education. Others start college inadequately prepared in foundational reading and writing skills,” (Strassler, 2020). Professors may adapt to the new restrictions imposed by online learning, but the students who face an uphill battle (academically speaking) cannot.

Looking beyond this pandemic, there will likely be an increase in the number of courses and degrees offered entirely online in a virtual classroom. All of the issues mentioned above apply to those scenarios, since all of the relevant information remains the same.

Studying at home is not ideal when compared to a classroom. Without a devoted place to learn, it is unimaginably difficult to succeed in college. The amount of time spent studying and reviewing information is almost directly related to academic performance, unlike in high school. Without studying for a quiz in college, a student may fail, where that same student may pass with an A in high school.

Eliminating study places like libraries and student unions inevitably has a negative outcome. Some may argue in favor of online classes, as they do in fact eliminate the social contact that spreads this virus. But these short-term decisions must not be mistaken for long-term consequences. Ask yourself: how does long-term asynchronous learning fundamentally change higher education?

There is a reason why some classes continue to only be offered in person. The material covered in those classes is far too complex to reduce to an online lecture, quiz, and discussion post. In-person dialog must resume in order to foster maximum academic growth among the student body. 

Universities must take the safety of their students and staff seriously, without neglecting the purpose for their existence. The purpose a university is to educate its students and prepare them for the career ahead of them. To do so effectively, the classroom must be reinstated in one way or another, even if it takes time. Thriving academic performance is based upon the space in which the learning is taking place. Mrs. Strassler illustrates this final point perfectly saying, “… as soon as it becomes possible, we want to be sitting in those uncomfortable chairs again, reaching for our paradise of learning,” (Strassler, 2020).

References:

Strassler, K. (2020, May 4). What we lose when we go from the classroom to Zoom. The New York Times. https://www.nytimes.com/2020/05/04/sunday-review/zoom-college-classroom.html