Compare and contrast online learning to classroom learning

On account of the outbreak of COVID-19 pandemic dragging people into hell and death, government implemented Movement Control Order (MCO) as a preventive measure as soon as possible in order to prevent more citizens from being infected as well as fighting against COVID-19 pandemic effectively. Nevertheless, learning should never cease since one's wisdom comes from education and learning. Therefore, online learning is forced to be commonly carried out during MCO period. What's online learning? Online learning is education that takes place over the internet but not in traditional classrooms. As people would expect, in nature, there are a lot of similarities and differences between online learning and classroom learning. Interaction and feedback are extremely important in both manners of learning, in addition, both of them require students' exceptional time management skills; however, they are different in their convenience and environment.

First and foremost, interaction and feedback actually play the very significant roles in both learning methods. It is deeply believed that everyone has the similar experience when teachers ask some questions during class before. This is because the teachers need to know if the students comprehend what he teaches so as to make sure that all the students play catch-up. Likewise, teachers will also raise a question and ask students to answer, as well as demanding them to give some responses during online classes. Besides that, in order that evaluating and rising up the students' learning capabilities, assignments and tests are always being given to them in normal time. Similarly, in the manner of online learning, teachers allot an assignment and test via "google classroom", "google form" and so on. Hence, interaction and feedback are the essential components of both online learning and classroom learning.

Apart from that, whether online learning or classroom learning, students' outstanding time management skills are quite necessary. In fact, time management skill is crucial for everyone but not just for students because it efficiently makes us accomplish more tasks in a shorter period of time, even to be successful in achieving goals. Both learning methods require students to manage their time wisely. In usual, even though exhausted after school, students have to structure their time outside of the classroom to allow for studying, projects and schoolwork. In contrast, without supervision of teacher, students must urge themselves to complete schoolwork and attend online classes in time with their strong self-discipline. Otherwise, the assignments given by teachers continue to accumulate until it reaches a degree that cannot be completed. Needless to say, an excellent time management skill plays such significant role that it should be developed by everyone to completely accomplish all the tasks, even to be someone successful.

Notwithstanding the similarities both share, many differences exist. In my way of thinking, convenience brought by online learning and classroom learning is different. In traditional learning method, we can ask teachers or classmates directly if there is any question cannot be solved ourselves and this way is more efficient to help us understand something intricate. On the contrary, hailed as "a huge repository of endless knowledge," there are actually abundant resources for us to learn in the Internet. If we have no idea on the lessons, we can just find out the information we need by touching screen with a finger instantly. Furthermore, we are able to attend classes at home instead of taking several means of transportations to go to school, even need not wear school uniforms via online learning. As the saying goes," kill two birds with one stone," thus, it not only saves our precious time, but also helps us economise on transportation. Nonetheless, some hands-on subjects like art, music and PE which often require equipment, movement and interaction are easier to be taught in traditional method but extremely hard to be taught online. In short, they are different in their convenience.

Last but not least, there is no doubt that another difference between them is their environment. So far as we know, many a study revealed that environment will unconsciously affect one's learning efficiency. It is a common belief that students may have a lower learning spirit at home because home is the most comfortable and relaxing place for them. Not only that, we will also feel a sense of loneliness in the event of studying alone for a long time. However, we will have a higher learning spirit when going to school as usual because the situation of studying together with classmates in the same place and at the same time is quite beneficial for us to study attentively and vigorously. In the meantime, students can also get along with their friends face-to-face, thereby the bonds between their friends get stronger as well. As a result, there is an open-and-shut distinction of environment between online learning and classroom learning.

In a nutshell, there are a mountain of similarities and differences between online learning and classroom learning. To sum up, what their similarities is that both require interaction and feedback as well as students' time management skills; nevertheless, they are different in their convenience and environment. There is a saying we are all familiar with," when things reach an extreme, they can only move in the opposite direction," as a matter of fact, everything on such fascinating world is a double-edged sword, therefore, we need to make the best of today's modern technique so that it will not bring any detrimental impacts on us. Nowadays, the method of online learning is not mature enough to be commonly carried out and we still need to study in traditional way which wastes a great deal of resources deprived from mother nature, but I believe that human beings will study online efficiently and proficiently someday in the near future. From that day, our mother nature will be beautiful again.