MCC Daily Tribune

TCC Tip of the Day: What our students are saying Part II

The Teaching and Creativity Center surveyed students about their experience with learning through this pandemic. Our intention is to highlight what practices are particularly effective and share student suggestions. These insights are gifts that we don't often have the benefit of receiving.

Today we will look at "What is the most important thing that you wish faculty understood about taking courses during COVID-19?"

My lifestyle changed and now I have the extra stress of what is happening and what is going to happen to us and the world. I was having a headache everyday and struggled with my personal life and on top of it all school didn't stop.

There isn't much of a learning environment at home compared to in a classroom surrounded by classmates and a professor, so it is much more difficult to understand and absorb information.

We take multiple classes.

Being at home means having a lot more distractions and it is much harder to maintain the same workload.

Testing online is much more difficult. There are a lot of other assignments that fall around the same time. Blackboard has a lot of glitches with taking online tests. Multiple times the answers wouldn't save or the entire test would submit on its own a few question into the exam.

It feels more difficult to comprehend material while being at home. I'm sure it's just because it's just harder to sit for a lecture at home!

Bogged down internet can interfere with zoom lectures.

I think faculty needs to understand that sometimes technology isn't always very reliable and even if we have prepared and purchased solid Internet it isn't that we didn't prepare.

Some professors seem to think that all of us younger students are so text savvy... That's not the case. I'm actively trying to learn all of the new technologies to keep up.

The most important thing I wish faculty understood is how valuable it is to be realistic during this time. Many students are out of work, still going to work and/or have become teachers to their children all while completing their own course load and dealing with varying feelings and emotions. I understand that there is a level of educating the faculty needs to provide in order for us students to be competent, but trying to create and uphold a course workload that is the equivalent to students being on campus is unrealistic and extremely overwhelming/frustrating.

At home distractions

That staying on schedule is harder than it might sound. There are so many variables in life right now with children home and schedules being completely off.

Printing is very difficult with no resources or income for ink.

Internet lagging is an issue. Some of us don't have quiet homes and it can be difficult to focus, study, and get work done.

Everyone may not have the necessary tools to efficiently do presentations over a zoom call.

I have a lot going on outside of class and I am really trying my best but still falling behind. I want them to know that I care about my education and that learning is a lot harder for me online but I do try.

We have so many distractions at home and we are not able to meet with classmates to process information.

How hard it is to figure out when everything is due and also how to do any of it.

Making things clear is very important even if you feel like you are over explaining.

Its stressful not having teachers in person.

That zoom during taking a test is stressful and if the concern is cheating maybe give us less time.

Eugenia Merliss
Teaching & Creativity Center
04/22/2020