This article will concentrate on some of the 10 disadvantages of online classes for students which we will like for you to put your down to see. The modern education has seen a lot of innovation and new methods of imparting knowledge, but none of them has really evaded the possibilities of having their own downsides.
So, it is about time we got to discuss the demerits of online or virtual education, as the world has successfully moved from the usual physical structure where learning has to be face-to-face to a structure where learning is assimilated through the internet often from the comfort of one’s home, office, etc.
10 Disadvantages of Online Classes for Students
As much as there are many advantages of the e-learning programs currently held by universities and schools across the world, there are some silver linings that cannot be shaded out of the surface too. So, before you make the conclusion of sinking too deep into the idea of thinking you can afford the many benefits offered by this modern academic innovation, it is time you also checked some of the 10 disadvantages of online classes for students described below.
1. Social Isolation
The E-Learning methods currently practiced in education tend to make participating students undergo contemplation, remoteness and a lack of interaction. As a result, many of the students and teachers who inevitably spend much of their time online can start experiencing signs of social isolation, due to the lack of human communication in their lives. Social isolation coupled with a lack of communication often leads to several mental health issues such as heightened stress, anxiety, and negative thoughts.
2. Limitations to Many Academic Disciplines
This point is related to what we have discussed above. Every discipline of education cannot be effectively taught in online classes. At least in the current scenario, online classes is more appropriate for fields that focus on theoretical knowledge rather than fields like medical science, which ask for a more practical approach. While things may differ in the future, we cannot wholly teach all fields through e-learning.
3. Ineffective Communicational Skill Development
Online classes methods are proven to be highly effective at improving the academic knowledge of the students. However, developing the communicational skills of the students is an area often neglected during online lessons. Due to the lack of face-to-face communication between peers, students and teachers in an online setting, the students might find that they are unable to work effectively in a team setting. Neglecting the communicational skills of the students will inevitably lead to many graduates who excel in theoretical knowledge, but who fail to pass their knowledge on to others.
4. Accreditation and Quality Assurance Problems
Organizing online classes is still a comparatively new addition to education. However, one of the 10 disadvantages of online classes for students is the fact that quality assurance for students and of course the accreditation assurance might be a problem to contend with. Various e-learning platforms have no accreditation, and a third party unchecks the quality of education. Lack of proper accreditation and quality check of material cripple the legitimacy of online education.
For e-learning to stand shoulder to shoulder with traditional learning, we must ensure that all online learning platforms are qualified and have proper accreditation.
5. Feedback Limits
In traditional classrooms, teachers can give students immediate face-to-face feedback. Students who are experiencing problems in the curriculum can resolve them quickly and directly either during the lecture or during the dedicated office hours. Personalized feedback has a positive impact on students, as it makes learning processes easier, richer, and more significant, all the while raising the motivation levels of the students.
Online education, unlike modern education, still tends to struggle with student feedback. Students completing regular assessments become dissatisfied when they experience a lack of personalized feedback. The traditional methods of providing student feedback don’t always work in an e-Learning environment, and because of this, online education providers are forced to look towards alternative methods for providing feedback.
6. Inaccessibility to Illiterates
One can argue that today, almost everyone has a mobile device, a laptop, or both. So e-learning is accessible to all of those as long as they have some degree of understanding of technology. However, there’s still a vast population of people who either don’t have access to these devices or don’t know how to navigate the internet. Until there is this gap, e-learning will remain inaccessible to everyone. So, it’s essential to look at e-learning as an addition to traditional learning rather than a replacement.
7. Self-motivation and Time Management
Lack of self-motivation among students continues to be one of the primary reasons why students fail to complete online courses. In traditional classrooms, there are numerous factors which constantly push students towards their learning goals. Face-to-face communication with professors, peer-to-peer activities, and strict schedules all work in unison to keep the students from falling off track during their studies.
In the setting of an online learning environment, however, there are fewer external factors which push the students to perform well. In many cases, the students are left to fend for themselves during their learning activities, without anyone constantly urging them on towards their learning goals.
8. Examination Malpractice
Unfortunately, one of the biggest disadvantages of online education continues to be cheating through various methods. Compared to on-campus students, online students can cheat on assessments more easily as they take assessments in their own environment and while using their personal computers. The students cannot be directly observed during assessments without a video feed, making cheat detection during online assessments more complicated than for traditional testing procedures. Additionally, without a proper identity verification system in place, students taking online assessments might be able to let a third party take the assessment instead of themselves, resulting in a wholly fraudulent test result.
9. Lack of Practicals
Although this drawback of E-Learning is starting to be addressed and fixed by some of the more innovative online learning platforms, the problem has yet to disappear completely. The problem is that a large portion of E-Learning training providers choose to focus largely (in many cases entirely) on developing theoretical knowledge, rather than practical skills. The reason for this is evident – theoretical lectures are considerably easier to implement in an online learning environment than practical lectures.
After all, without face-to-face communication and physical classrooms to use as a workshop, implementing practical projects in an online course requires significantly more prior planning than theoretical training.
10. Eye Defects
Online classes for students also inevitably leads to prolonged exposure to the screen which at the end of the does not only prove harmful to kids’ eyes but it is also seen to be very inimical to adults. It may affect mental development in kids. In adults, too much exposure can lead to weakened eyesight and migraines. This too is one of the 10 disadvantages of online classes for students.
