Online Learning During COVID-19

Abstract

This chapter focuses on the challenges unique to online learning environments, how students responded to the abrupt shift to remote learning, and how this impacted their ability to thrive in the midst of a global pandemic. It illustrates how instructors' ability (or inability) to smoothly transition from in-person to online environments impacted students' learning. The chapter examines some of the challenges students faced with online learning, including changes in learning environments, communication with instructors, and classroom dialogues. It explores instances of students thriving in online learning environments. The inherent unpredictability of the COVID-19 pandemic and some institutional inconsistencies created challenges to building an environment in which students could thrive. Although the University attempted to create an online environment that allowed students to continue their education during the pandemic, significant issues arose that forced students to teach themselves, often with little support from faculty. The challenges of learning online were compounded with the loss of on-campus resources such as access to quiet study spaces and the University library. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2023 APA, all rights reserved)