Back to real classrooms, minus hours of screen time

 

Schoolchildren attending classes on Monday. Teachers feel they will benefit from not having to stare at computer screens for hours.

PETALING JAYA: Primary school teachers say they have mixed feelings about the reopening of schools, but feel that the return to physical classes will benefit both the teachers and pupils.

It was back to physical classes for children in Year 1 and 2 on Monday, after months of online lessons when the conditional movement control order was imposed across most states. Older students will be returning in stages over the next month and a half.

A science teacher from Selangor told FMT she had “mixed feelings” about the return to the classroom as she has adapted to the ‘new normal’ of working from home, but says it would be helpful for most students.

She said that while many of her Year 1 to 3 students have done a good job of embracing online classes, it could be difficult to get them to focus on digital learning given their age.

“I personally prefer physical classes, especially because with online learning there are a lot of science experiments and hands-on activities that I cannot do.”

She added that she had to redesign a lot of her practical classes, and think up “new creative ways to explain science concepts” for online classes.

Physical classes also provide more scope for targeted instruction, with teachers able to pay better attention to the needs of individual students.

Another primary school teacher from Selangor said that while she “definitely” preferred physical teaching as a way to engage with her students, she was well aware of the risks.

“I do have my reservations because the Covid-19 numbers are still high, so we really need to uphold social distancing, especially since these are young children.”

As an English teacher, she said that there were many aspects of learning that were difficult in online classes.

“Some of the biggest challenges were that I couldn’t really monitor little things like spoken communication, handwriting skills, even spelling. I also think the students were not able to communicate well with each other. There wasn’t much social communication with online classes.”

“The pros (for online classes) lie with the fact that students had to adjust really quickly so it teaches them adaptability and to apply themselves in challenging situations. But we will also see a huge decline in things like handwriting, and their mastering of the submission of tasks as well. That’s one thing we have a huge challenge with.

“In the long run, the cons outweigh the pros, in my opinion.”

She was also worried that with students spending so much time in front of their computers, physical fitness may have declined.

Even some teachers had complained about developing back pain as a result of hours in front of a screen. - FMT