Daily Times

Educational institutes in our country were closed down a few weeks ago due to the the COVID-19 pandemic. Obviously, our institutes, teachers, and students did not expect that the whole education system would come to a halt all of a sudden and they that would have to turn to online learning and teaching methods. A few years ago when I was studying at Harvard University, there were a number of degree-awarding courses available that allowed students to complete a few semesters online, but those students were also compelled to complete the majority of their studies at Harvard in order to meet the degree completion requirements.

There are several methods of distance learning being used in developed countries around the world. First, let us analyze this mode of online learning and see how effective it is. Marshall McLuhan, a renowned communication theorist of his time, wrote a book titled Understanding Media: The Extension of Man in 1964. In this book, he proposed that the media, not the content it carries, should be the focus of study. According to his theory, as the medium changes, it brings with it a drastic change in the message being delivered, while, McLuhan also stressed, the media being used is a message in itself. You can observe this theory at work in your practical life when you see a similar message having a completely different impact on you depending on the media being used to deliver it.

This is the basic reason that, even though the internet has been around for a few decades, the importance of attending schools and colleges in person as the preferred source of education has still not been reduced. Due to this, even today, the educational institutes in the developed world are overflowing with students. Regardless of the super-fast internet connections of the modern world, people still prefer physically attending educational institutes since it allows them to learn a lot more than just their formal education. The environment created in such institutes helps students understand each other better and improve their spiritual and mental connections, as required by human nature. Such an environment cannot be matched with the online education methods, a fact that underlines the core difference between online methods of study and attending an educational institute.

There can be no doubt that our educational institutes are in no way equipped to provide online education nor are our teachers trained enough to adopt such methods. The basic question arises of whether the students and their parents committed to online education at the time they paid their fees to the institute. Such a practice – where you pay for one thing but are provided something else or rather have something else forced on you – cannot be justified anywhere in the world. This leaves you completely helpless and is a complete violation of basic justice and ethics. A few institutes have implemented this online education system so strictly that the students find themselves obliged to submit. Otherwise, they might as well say goodbye to their degrees and any fees paid.

Though the internet has been around for a few decades, the importance of attending schools and colleges in person as the preferred source of education has still not been reduced

For the coming few months – or perhaps even the whole semester – the educational institutes need to set up a suitable system and train their teachers to establish an alternate online system, capable of coping with such complex challenges in the future. But it is only fair that, before implementing any such system of distance learning, the students and their parents be allowed to go through the new terms of agreement.

We also need to consider the current global scenario as news of the continuously spreading pandemic and the increasing death toll take up the majority of media headlines with each passing day. Have we thought about the psychological impact this situation could have on our students? On top of that, we have all been stuck in our homes due to the ongoing lockdown, which has put everyone under an immense amount of mental stress. In such a stressful environment, how appropriate is it to impose a new education system on our students?

When the students attended classes in their institutes, they not only received an education but also got to interact with their fellow students. They participated in co-curricular activities that allowed them to relax and forget their stressful routine, but now everyone is stuck in their homes. First, their connection with society was severed and now a new education system is being imposed on them, in which they are being tested online, soon to be followed by online examinations. Will the students be able to live up to their potential in such a scenario? Is this not unfair to these students? Is it not putting the large number of students who do not have access to high-speed internet connections at a disadvantage? Doesn’t this discrimination go against the Constitution of Pakistan?

With the help of their teachers, the educational institutes need to create an environment that is conducive to discussions, meetings, and exchanges of ideas among students. This will help counter the negative effects that the lack of human-to-human contact is creating during this time of social distancing. Such interactive sessions should be conducted, but they need to be held without the threat of grades or testing hanging over their heads. Otherwise, we might harm our future generations instead of doing them any good. Our educational institutes, as well as the concerned government representatives, need to think carefully about this serious challenge and together come up with a practical solution as soon as possible.

The writer is a freelancer