Online learning is becoming more and more popular. Social, cultural and health factors can all play a part in students moving to an online learning model – yet teachers and parents remain divided over its efficacy as a legitimate alternative to traditional in-school education.

We recently wrote an article discussing the rapid increase of students being homeschooled and this discussion lends itself to the wider topic of online learning. Below we have listed five pros and five cons of online learning, along with a solution to ease those con-concerns in the form of our flagship product Quizalize:

Five Pros of Online Learning:

1) Flexible study location:

Whether at home, at daycare, on holiday or even in the car, online learning affords students – and their parents and caregivers – the flexibility to study anywhere.

2) Bullying reduction:

Online learning can remove students from dangerous situations at school, offering a safe alternative to learn in.

3) No distractions:

When not vying for the attention of their teacher amongst a class size of 30+ other eager children, students can devote all their attention to their studies and progress at a quicker pace.

4) Hours of study:

Along with working from any location, studying online means students can learn at any time. Some students – especially older students – may be naturally more productive in the early morning or later evening. By giving students the autonomy over their learning schedule, higher attainment levels can be achieved.

5) Mental health:

For some students, the school setting can be an anxious environment. Noisy playgrounds and crowded classrooms can cause sensory overload for learners, resulting in discomfort, anxiety and sometimes behavioural issues. Learning online removes this obstacle, providing a calmer and more productive learning environment.

Five Cons of Online Learning:

1) Supervision:

Not all students are suited to the online education model. Younger students especially require constant supervision to not only keep them focused but to also keep them safe.

2) No qualified teacher:

Teachers are highly trained experts in their field. Without a teacher leading a topic and being available to answer questions, students can easily fall behind and become disengaged with the topic being studied.

3) Lack of social interaction:

Children learn valuable social skills when attending school. Being removed from this social setting means students are not seeing their friends and peers every day, which unless substituted with extra-curricular social experiences outside of school can cause children to miss out on practicing the social skills they would otherwise learn at school.

4) Socio-economic barriers:

Online learning is dependent on having access to online resources. Not all families can afford or have access to the infrastructure of a computer, tablet or a stable Wi-Fi connection.

5) Unregulated Curricula:

In the online learning world, there are many resources available – but not all are made equal. A lack of regulation across these resources means that finding quality, curriculum-linked online resources can be a minefield for parents and caregivers.

Go to app.quizalize.com

Our solution:

It is clear that when students are studying online there are many factors to consider. While the pros are certainly compelling, the cons listed are significant also.

Quizalize is the flagship product of Zzish, an impact startup driven to address the United Nation’s Fourth Sustainable Development Goal of delivering ‘quality education to all’. With over 1 million pieces of teacher produced, curriculum-linked content available for free for all, Quizalize offers a tool to facilitate online learning whether in the classroom or not.

Teacher and parents alike use Quizalize to deliver robust and accurate resources to their students and children, confident in the quality of the content and delighted at the accessibility of the platform.

You can sign up to Quizalize for FREE today by clicking here. Try our contribution to the online learning movement and let us know: how did you enjoy using our quizzes in your education setting?

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