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The rise of COVID-19 was met with a demand for an enhanced online learning experience. With schools closing down left and right, instructors were encouraged to find new ways to keep their students engaged with the curriculum at a safe distance.
Most, if not all, schools now use Zoom as their primary platform for instruction and communication. NC State is no exception to this trend, and I couldn’t be happier about it. Zoom’s interactive features allow students the opportunity to make their learning experience more dynamic and engaging. The breakout room feature lets students interact with one another in a meaningful way.
I, personally, value the relationships I make with my peers. Now, not every relationship is the same, but I still value what I can learn from others and how I can apply an experience to my learning and well-being. That being said, I believe these effects can only be achieved through the use of dynamic, constantly changing breakout rooms.
Last semester, I took a course that focused on problem-solving in a team-based environment. And honestly? I was kind of blown away with how well the class was structured. There was this constant emphasis on engagement with others, which was supported through the use of daily breakout rooms. In these rooms, our groups were always pre-assigned, and the conversation was always driven by a specific purpose or goal.
As profound as my experience may have been, I still felt as if I missed an opportunity to interact with people outside of my assigned groups. The breakout rooms were fantastic, but I felt like I would have benefited from them being more dynamic. Did I lack initiative? Maybe a little bit, but given the circumstances, I think there should have been a push from my professor to keep me engaged with more students in my class.
Overall, though, my experience was very positive. So much so, in fact, that I’m shocked more instructors don’t utilize breakout rooms as often as others. It feels like this dramatic change in scenery has discouraged professors from giving their students the experience they deserve in the classroom.
With half the student body taking classes from home, a lot of necessary social interaction is being put on hold for the sake of preserving the wellness of others. For many, the only opportunity to meet a fresh new face is over a Zoom call. As an out-of-state student myself, I didn’t know anyone coming into NC State. It was intimidating, but I was thankful for some of the small connections I was able to make in breakout rooms despite being off-campus for most of the semester.
I’m a self-proclaimed extrovert, but I understand that not everyone needs this same level of socialization in their lives. That being said, I still think that interacting with a variety of perspectives, especially in the classroom environment, is an important experience for any growing learner. By engaging with different viewpoints, we are better able to understand our proficiency in a specific discipline. When we talk with new people, we learn to challenge our own beliefs and, as a result, become more educated.
COVID-19 has turned the school system on its head. It’s hard right now for some people, but it doesn’t need to be this hard. There are ways to improve how we learn and how we interact with our peers in an online environment. It takes a heightened sense of awareness to understand where we’re falling short and what can be done to improve the well-being and education of our student body. Once we gain that awareness, we have to take action and implement change where change can be made.