Online courses! Good or Bad?

Anton

Mrs.Toonen

WF MWF 9:30

Online courses came onto the stage during the pandemic. They have become a popular way to study nowadays. Of course, they have many pros. Online course is extremely convenient under certain circumstances. They won’t be limited by classrooms or distance. Students were stuck at home during pandemic but were still taking classes. The isolation didn’t stop the flowing of knowledge. Additionally, online courses give more freedoms to students. For example, some online courses are recorded. Which means students can take them anytime they want and change their plan easily if they get sick or something. Their schedules are more flexible this way. Another pro is that online courses meet some students’ need. For those who don’t like to go out or shy. Online courses provide a good relief to them. They don’t need to walk through winds and rains for classes.

Despite the pros, online courses also have cons. There was a fun story during the pandemic, my math teacher randomly opened a student’s camera. He found the student was holding his cell phone, laughing loudly. Then he raised his head, said weakly, “sorry~”. That was a funny scene, but it does reveal the problem that students are not focused enough during online course. They may on their phones or looking at other tabs on their computers. This will no doubt reduce learning effectiveness. Another point is that online courses could make students easily fall behind because it’s harder to ask questions during classes. They can’t easily raise their hands as they used to. Students can only write emails to ask questions which can’t express themselves clearly. Once students are not self-discipline enough, they may struggle.

https://kissflow.com/digital-workplace/remote-work/pros-and-cons-of-working-from-home/

Heaven and Hell?

Qijing Zhou

Mrs.Toonen

Heaven or Hell?

  There’s lots of differences between high school and college. I want to write about two differences in today’s blog. The first difference is about free time. In high school, everything had been arranged for me. I had to wake up at 6:00 a.m. I took nine classes and a evening self-study. I could go to bed at 10 p.m. I didn’t have any free time on things except for studying.However, I only had 4 classes in the first semester of college and those classes were quite easy. I only had 3 or even 1 class a day! So much free time! I decided to start from things that I always wanted to do rather than waste the time. I started working out more in the gym and trying to learn piano myself. I found myself changed a lot after a semester. The most obvious change was that I looked stronger and spunkier than before.

  The second difference is about teaching style. In high school, teachers would scold students for a simple miscalculation. And they only encouraged students who did well. I still remember my class teacher spent 30 minutes telling us never to chat during class because somebody chatted in class. I just couldn’t figure out how could she keep talking non-stop about the same thing for 30 minutes. Besides, she took up our time to show her frustration which was also ridiculous for me. In college, however, teachers encourage and guide students more. My first year seminar teacher, Baker, always encouraged us to speak about our points. He said “very nice view!” every time I expressed opinions. I never expected to receive such praise for a simple view. That encouraged me a lot and I am more willing to speak during classes thanks to him.

https://www.istockphoto.com/photo/heaven-and-hell-religious-choice-gm1225837096-360964716