Why More Students Earning “F” Grades During Online Learning and What to Do With That

From the time schools closed in march 2020 due to the Corona pandemic, traditional learning is yet to return to normal. Although the schools were re-opened, many students opted to continue learning online. Those who returned to the traditional class were restricted from socialization. 

The grades for the last semester are out and to the surprise of many, the top in the list is grade ‘F.’ Some states like Virginia recorded an 83 percent increase in F grades. In this article, we will look into the reasons behind poor grades and the best remedy. 

The student is still new to the system

All along, students were used to the traditional way of attending classes from 8 am to around 3 pm. They would go home, do homework and prepare for the next lessons the next day. 

Schools were hurriedly closed after COVID set in and everyone hoped the closure would drag on for a month. Online learning was introduced at a time when the students were still at home. There were no physical teachers to help them with the basics of online learning. 

When the system began, students lacked the discipline to stay in class from the beginning to the end. The solution is to give students time to understand and fully embrace the system. They need help to understand that online classes are actual classes and an exam will follow in the end. 

Technical challenges

Although every home may have an internet connection, speeds differ from home to home. The differences are a result of bandwidths, gadgets in use and internet provider. The student whose family is connected to high-speed internet is better advantaged for online learning than the one in a home with slow internet. 

When the two students are attending the same virtual class, the one with a fast connection will be able to follow the class uninterrupted. The student with a slow connection might keep changing positions or switching their internet on and off. By the end of the lesson, the latter student might have lost almost half of the lesson. 

The solution is for the schools and state governments to advise parents to upgrade their internet connection. They may buy better internet accessories, change their computers, switch to another provider or buy a higher internet package. 

When many students record poor grades in their education, assignments can help them perform better. On the other hand, the student needs to show commitment to doing their academic assignments. It can be hard to beat all assignment deadlines, especially when you have several of them. One of the solutions is to hire an essay writer from an online writing service. The second and easiest solution is to purchase an assignment at Edubirdie website. You can be sure that it is plagiarism-free and of high quality. 

Unsuitable online learning environment

This is another painful reality. Parents were not given enough time to prepare conducive places for online learning. You might be surprised to find students learning online in the living room with a lot of interruptions. 

The TV could be on with someone watching one of the student’s favorite series, the younger sibling is crying or needs attention and the dog want to play with the student. The student will hardly concentrate in such an environment. 

The remedy to this challenge will be for the parents to set aside a conducive study room for the students. The rooms should have the right study furniture, the right colors and enough natural and electrical light. 

Absentee students 

During the online class, there is no teacher to push the student in class or to hold them in class until the lesson is over. A student may decide without any good reason to skip class or attend partly. 

To help the students learn how to stay focused, the teacher can change their way of grading and reward students a point every time they attend a full lesson. The student can sign electronically at the beginning of the lesson and the teacher will keep his or her e-records updated. Before the end of each lesson, the teacher may do a short assessment test and the points earned will continually accumulate in the student’s final grades. 

Conclusion 

Online learning is new for most students who were used to the traditional online classroom. Students and parents require time to prepare psychologically and to set the right online learning environment. On the other hand, the government should prepare the right online teaching environment for the teachers by providing everything they need in terms of technology. With every stakeholder on board, online learning can do exceedingly well. 

Author’s Bio:

Emma Rundle works for a typesetting company that writes and edits coursebooks from major publishers for schools and colleges. She is a brilliant writer and writes part-time for an online agency that provides coursework and essays. In her free time, she loves to read classic novels, takes yoga classes and enjoys kitchen gardening.