Three Things Covid 19 Might End in Higher Education
The global pandemic of Covid 19 has brought the human civilization to its knees. It has made us realise the palpable dangers that our system could be subjected to- affecting all spheres of life across the globe. It has brought to its fore the vulnerabilities of the human species, ushering the ‘new normal’ for the world at large. Quarantined lives, locked down economies and social isolation were the buzzwords of the year 2020, which was no less than a nightmare for the entire population of the world!
The inevitable perils of this ‘new normal’ did not escape the realm of higher education. In fact, it has thrown light upon the dispensability of higher education in a modern capitalistic economy. While private offices and enterprises are jolted to begin operations amid the pandemic, educational institutions are yet to be fully operational.
Most educational institutions have now adopted online modes of teaching and US universities have encouraged foreign students to return to their native countries. With cancelled community projects and group activities, this pandemic has proven to be a dangerous hiatus for students, especially ones in their final years as they are left in the lurch with their nearly completed degrees haunting them in their sleep!
The students suffer from massive hopelessness as the absence of classroom teaching begins to affect their mental health, with reported rise in cases of depression and anxiety across the world during the lockdown and after.
In this article, we look at three major ways in which this pandemic would affect the future of educational institutions, pedagogical practices and campus life in general. We explore the inescapable deaths of certain practices and activities associated to higher education that the pandemic might help bury.
1. The Death of the Printed Text- When one ruminates on the future of higher education, one is transported to a piece of science fiction written by the 20th century American writer, Isaac Asimov. The story is titled ‘The Fun They Had’. Written in the 20th century, the story is strangely clairvoyant of the times that we reside in today. It describes a classroom of the future with a mechanical teacher and the death of printed texts.
Printed texts which have already been replaced with the burgeoning trend of virtual e-books are likely to disappear completely with virtual modes of teaching. The smell of books, the cock-eared pages and the look of ink on paper are bidding farewell to students. The future might just look at the printed books as a form of historical relic, as described by Asimov in the story.
2. The Death of Student-Teacher Interaction- With newer pedagogical tools for online teaching, the physical existence of a classroom has been brutally murdered by the pandemic. The online mode of teaching has widened the gap between teachers and students as teachers are merely reduced to a voice and a moving image. The flesh and skin human element of the teacher is forever lost in the web of the internet. Campus life in colleges and universities will no longer entail sessions of casual discussions with professors over a cup of coffee. Extra-departmental interaction and discussions will cease to exist, posing a huge threat to imaginative and critical powers of interdisciplinary thinking through personal conversations with professors from various disciplines.
3. The Death of Fun- With the plague hovering over higher education, most universities have cancelled team sport activities, cultural activities and other extra-curricular activities that is an integral part of campus life. With virtual teaching and social distancing being the new norm, interaction between students will lessen and it will lead to the obliteration of team activities and community projects. There will no longer be squeals of laughter emerging from the cafeteria, game-room or canteen. Romances will not blossom in the corridors of colleges and universities.
To conclude, life will no longer be the same for a university student after we’ve recovered from this dangerous disease that has pierced the heart of human relationships. Online modes of teaching, although convenient and safer, will snatch the heart of community participation which is an essential part of higher education. Like Asimov’s story, a future student will only look back to the pre-pandemic times and exclaim, ‘Oh, the fun they had!’
