When COVID-19 strikes, all educational institutions need to adapt to the new means and ways to continue their operations and classes as well. This alternative to learning new concepts and ideas is the new strategy to combat the COVID-19 pandemic. However, parents in the country today are worried about the educational status quo. They question the reliability and veracity of online learning. They question how students and teachers interact and how they participate in the process of learning. Despite all these questions, learners are left in the balance of whether or not they need to continue their studies or waste one year to let the COVID-19 pandemic vanish in existence.
Even if government leaders in the Philippines lift the travel restrictions and even if everything goes back to normal, academic classes still cannot resume. President Rodrigo Duterte in the Philippines announced that he would not allow pupils and students to go to school without the COVID-19 vaccine. He said that he could not let them get infected with the virus.
To curb the coronavirus, the Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte made public announcement that he could not let students rub their elbows in the crowded classroom that infringed the social distancing policy. However, he said he would allow these learners to go to school unless the COVID-19 vaccine is available. Professional experts and teachers, as well as the specialists in the Department of Education and the Commission on Higher Education, exert much effort in promoting this learning tool called online learning to convince parents and students like to acknowledge the positive impact of online education. In terms of online education, pupils and students learn new concepts and ideas, read the course materials, study the lessons, submit projects, and take tests online.
In response to the challenging times, schools have to combine face-to-face learning and online learning known as blended learning. Most colleges and universities adapt to the demands of technology in the face of COVID-19. Online learning and blended learning are two great options for parents, students, and teachers to consider in the time of COVID-19.
However, most parents disagree on the concept of online learning. Some of them argue that they refuse to register their pupils and students at online learning due to the nature of the educational system. They assert that their pupils and students will not learn anything if they let them register and study online. As well, they think that their pupils and students are not yet ready to study independently and that these learners may somehow access uncalled-for and unwarranted documents and video files. They think that the online world is dangerous. Because of this reasoning, they prefer to stop registering and stopping their pupils and students online and will study a year after the COVID-19 pandemic.
On the contrary, online education is not a bad thing. Pupils and students can learn meaningful things online. They can learn from their basic to advanced lessons from podcasts to tutorials. With thorough supervision, parents can closely monitor their students and their progress based on the lessons of the new concepts and ideas. They can even help their children explain some topics after their work since online learning allows their students to access to their desired time. In other words, online learning gives them free time. They can even encourage their family members to participate in many social conversations between them and their kids. For that reason, online education remains beneficial as it gives pupils and students more opportunities to study on their own.
Instead of panicking, parents need to work hard to make sure that their students learn new concepts and ideas. They need to think of the benefits of online education. Because of online education system, parents and learners can adjust their class and work schedules. In the end, online education is not a bad thing after all.
