For an updated version of this story visit Lamar University Press here: https://www.lamaruniversitypress.com/2021/02/coping-with-covid-19.php
With the continuation of the COVID pandemic into the new school semester, universities have had to accommodate for the transition to online learning. For some instructors it has been a struggle, and at the same time students have had to adjust to the new learning methods as well.
Some classes have been made fully online with no in person classes and others have become hybrid classes, which is a mixture of in person and online classes. They have struggled to keep up with all of the changes that seem to have piled up at once.
“One of the biggest challenges I’ve personally faced with online classes is not being able to ask questions face-to-face,” Beaumont junior Arely Medina said. “Although emailing our professors about any concerns or questions is possible, it’s hard to explain or give a definite answer to a complex question.”
Even though teachers are doing their best, some students are finding it difficult to have that interpersonal communication with their professors.
Beaumont junior Maissa Salibi said, “Live lectures were incredibly rare, and it was difficult to contact some of them by email throughout the semester.”
For both Medina and Salibi, a computer screen couldn’t replace the face-to-face interaction of a live class.
Another aspect students have had to deal with in online classes is their internet connection. Not everyone’s internet is high speed and connections can sometimes be spotty. This causes freezing screens or lagging audio during lectures and sometimes no consistent connection at all.
“My house has an unreliable internet connection.” San Antonio sophomore James Cottingham said.
Because of this he would have to go to his friend’s dorms when his Wi-Fi at home wasn’t working. But with the university having its own problems with Wi-Fi at times, the dorms weren’t always a reliable place to attend online lectures.
Unaccommodating professors were sometimes a struggle for students as well Salibi said,
“I don’t think some of my professors have done enough to accommodate for my online courses,” she said.
When one of her professors moved a hybrid class to online after students started testing positive for COVID, the teaching methods changed Salibi continued,
“She never held live lectures or anything after class moved online, it was kind of like go at your own pace and teach yourself,” the political science major said.
Cottingham had a similar experience with a professor. He said that one of his professors cut zero slack and didn’t allow any accommodations this semester.
The mental and emotional side effects were also concerning for the students. Spending less time in a classroom environment and having fewer social interactions with others has taken a toll on them. Medina said that throughout the semester she experienced a mixed range of emotions. She had moments of unhappiness and fatigue throughout the entire semester trying to juggle her classes, while also working two jobs.
All three students had similar feelings about tuition this semester. They agree that costs should have been lowered for all students at the university. Salibi said that tuition should have gone down significantly.
“I’m not receiving the same resources or help as I did before our courses moved online. I’m paying the same amount, if not slightly more, for less services.” she said.
Services such as the Fitness Center were impacted, since not all students feel comfortable being in an environment with other people. Certain sporting events have been cancelled or pushed back as well, but those students said they wondered why everyone still had to pay an athletic fee. Students feel like they are paying the same amount of money and recieving less.
Not everything has been negative though, they added. Salibi said that she enjoyed getting to stay home and use less gas since she’s not having to commute as much.
“The convenience of being at home and not having to drive a 30-minute commute to Lamar to attend class has been my favorite part,” she said.
Cottingham said that he likes the freedom that online classes have allowed him with his schedule.
“My favorite thing is generally following my own pace since I’m typically busy with work.” he said.
He is looking forward to the future and is taking time to appreciate the little things in life. He said that he has a lot of things to be grateful for and tries to think about those things when times get hard.
Gabby Gaspard 