The Pros and Cons of Blended & Remote Learning
November 12, 2020
The coronavirus pandemic has forced schools to adopt new learning models to ensure the continuity of education, two of which are blended and remote learning. We’ve surveyed Curtis High School teachers and students participating in both models to understand the advantages and drawbacks of the two systems.
Blended Learning
Foremost, it’s important to understand what blended learning is.
Blended systems incorporate in-person and remote schooling into one. For two days, teachers and students meet at school to engage in the traditional classroom procedures we’re all accustomed to. The rest of the week consists of online learning from home, with teachers and students interacting virtually through Google Classroom, Zoom, and Google Meets.
Pros
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More face-to-face socialization and interaction
A common theme in students’ responses on why they chose blended learning was the need for socialization. As Casey Mulvey, a sophomore, puts it, “I chose blended learning to get back to a proper learning environment. My favorite part of being in blended learning is seeing my friends and learning from my teachers in person twice a week.” Socializing with peers and teachers on a regular basis is important for our mental and emotional health, especially during these lonesome times and this approach makes it possible. Ms. Mattina, a health teacher, agrees: “I think it’s really important for students to be able to socialize and get out of their homes. Not all students have a healthy home life and I felt obligated to be a teacher who provides somewhere for those students to go during the day.”
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More independence for students
Furthermore, students in a blended learning model are pushed to develop independence, a critical skill in any lifestyle. As Mrs. Francis, the IB Coordinator and an Algebra II teacher, puts it: “My favorite part of blended learning is the transition to more student-centered learning; ‘forcing’ students to work more independently and gain ownership of their learning.”
Cons
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It can be difficult for students and teachers to communicate
It can be hard for teachers to continue classroom activities that were routine last year, such as group work and stations which cannot be done normally anymore due to social distancing measures. Teachers also have trouble with getting to know their students because of the lack of face-to-face interaction when they’re not in-person. As Mrs. Mattina puts it, “I find it difficult to develop relationships with the students and get to know them since I only see them in person once a week.”
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Boring free-periods
Another issue that students seem to dislike are the holes in their schedules, or their free periods. Sebastian David, a sophomore, states that “I am really satisfied with blended learning, however, seventy-eight minutes when you have a hole on your schedule is a little too much because I have 2 of them on Friday.” Free periods are appealing at first, but students have voiced that staying in the auditorium for extended periods of time becomes boring. Omosofe Noruwa, another sophomore, agrees: “My least favorite parts about blended learning are just the 78 minutes. It’s excessive.”
Remote Learning
In contrast, remote learning gives students the option to utilize the internet to attend class without physically attending school. With growing concerns about health and safety during the pandemic, students and parents have resorted to the remote model.
Pros
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Convenient and Flexible
First, students get to stay home and work from their bedrooms. This is especially advantageous to students who usually travel long distances to school; travel time is now out of the equation. Sebastian Chan, a Curtis sophomore, loves it: “My favorite part (of remote learning) is that I don’t have to wake up early to take the bus.”
Students also enjoy more sleep and flexibility in remote learning. Tracy Zheng, a sophomore, says, “I chose remote learning because I don’t like getting dressed for school, and also because I could stay in bed.”
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It feels safer
Students also have family members in their households that are susceptible to COVID-19, with older relatives at higher risk. Remote learning alleviates this danger by keeping students indoors. Kaetlynn Velez, a Curtis Sophomore said, “I chose remote because I can’t risk going outside because I live with older people who are more vulnerable to the virus.”
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Additional resources
Remote learning also offers more resources to teachers for a more coherent learning experience. Robert Matinna, an English teacher, expresses his appreciation for it as he says “Some of the pros of fully remote teaching started when the city gave us free access to online resources that we wouldn’t have had access to, had it not been for quarantine. Because of that, many new tools have been discovered. They add more variety to the things we can do in the virtual classroom.” It can be easier for teachers to teach over the internet with added digital assets such as videos and programs.
Cons
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Accessiblity
One major disadvantage of remote learning is that not everyone has access to reliable and up-to-date technology to participate in online classes. While this issue has been addressed through DOE-lended devices, not all students have access to a stable internet connection. Additionally, strong dependence on technology creates a discrepancy in students and teachers between those who are experienced with technology and those who aren’t.
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Demands more self-discipline and developed time-management skills
The flexibility of remote learning is a double-edged sword. A student’s success in remote learning rests almost entirely on them. They have to have the discipline, motivation, and time management skills to attend classes and do their work. While it may be more convenient than having to commute to school, students may indulge too much in comfort and forget to prioritize their academic responsibilities.
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Lack of interaction between students and teachers
Also, remote learning hinders students’ socialization, especially with friends they haven’t seen since the pandemic started. This lack of interaction can lead to feelings of isolation, which can diminish a student’s motivation. For some, not having enough interaction with peers and teachers is the greatest obstacle to remote learning. Richard Gill, a sophomore, says, “I feel like I’m isolated from the world and in turn cause negative emotions to spur. Since we need others to survive, it has become harder to live without other people around you. Since I haven’t been able to talk to friends, I developed a need to want to talk to them, and knowing that I can’t, makes me feel powerless.”
Overall, students choose the model that suits their needs best. Many enjoy the flexibility and peace of mind of remote learning while others love the opportunity to see their friends and teachers again in the remote model. Regardless, everyone can agree that coronavirus has definitely ushered in some huge changes to the education system.
I definitionally think that there are many pros and cons to what we are going through. I did not enter when school first reopened because of fear of catching the virus. I wanted to be sure that if we went back the virus would be under control. It’s been almost a year since I have seen my friends, and I really enjoyed going to school learning and seeing them. I didn’t really go out after school, or on my days off, it was always just home, school, back home. I do miss socializing with my friends, and seeing the teachers. Even tho, I can work from my bedroom, it is a little frustrating being home because some students, and or teachers don’t know how to work certain websites, and that only makes it harder for us to work together and get work done. I feel like when I’m not in a zoom, I’m doing homework and checking my emails. It can be stressful but I try to stay focused and think positive.
This was definitely an article that can speak for many students right now, especially me. I highly agree with pretty much all pros and cons listed above. I do feel like an addition can be made to the cons for slender learning. Though the school is taking amazing precautions to ensure the safety of Curtis students it is always a risk to have contact with others in school. Something that doesn’t entirely related to blended learning in particular, but is still caused by kids coming to school is the lack of mask wearing when exiting the school. We all get tired of wearing our mask for hours straight so the second students leave the school, where it is required to wear masks, they immediately take it off. This isn’t directly caused by blended but is something that must be thought about in association to blended learning. There really isn’t much that can be done about this sadly, but it still does but many kids at risk of spreading Covid-19.
I definitely agreed with this article, many pros, and cons. When the school closed down in March 2020 I was so scared I was thinking to myself “How will I pass my class” “When will I see my friends” “Will COVID stop?” “What will our future look like?”. I choose remote only because I’m so scared of getting covid, but I realize that I was learning more things in person I understand what my teacher was asking us since we are in remote learning it’s all different websites, different work that I don’t even understand. Login into your class 24/7 looking at a screen is boring you want to socialize and go to clubs and hang out party, but with COVID going on you can’t do that you can’t just be like ” Hey let’s throw a party and invite everyone ” it spreads. Lots of people don’t wear masks or gloves or they just don’t wear anything, WHICH is bad if you ask me. Many families have to quit their job and provide for their kids get them food, get them clothes, to get them shoes but they couldn’t because they weren’t getting paid enough from their jobs. That’s why many people choose blended learning so their kids can have something to eat. I just hope that one day we can all go back to normal.
I strongly agree with this article about the pros and cons of remote learning and blended learning . I do believe that many of us struggle with remote and blended learning. I truly believe it is hard having to learn from home because not many students participate and interact with their fellow classmates, it is also difficult not being able to interact with our friends.
I genuinely appreciate listening to others opinions and ideas, but now with the changes that have happened not everyone shows their faces and not everyone interacts with one another. But in another hand, I appreciate being home because it is too much to travel, and I can’t manage to be at school all day, I get bored at school but I also get bored at home so I’m indecisive of where I want to be.
I truly think that with this remote learning my grades have gotten better, even though it may be tiring, it is worth all the hard work that I’ve put into all my classes, unlike when I was in school. The reason why I chose remote is because I wanted to be home but I hadn’t realize how hard it was to not be in school.
I just hope to go back to school, I miss all the yelling the hallways and just everyone interacting, and I miss the staff that would support me.