By Sabrina Huerta | Staff Writer

    Students’ grades have decreased during distance learning and we are doing worse for various reasons.  

First, not every child has a stable household, and many students suffer from family problems which can make learning from home difficult. Some students are required to take care of younger siblings, live in crowded homes, or are struggling with an abusive parent or guardian. An unstable home life can push education down a student’s list of priorities, causing their grades to fall.

   According to Harvard Business Review, another reason why students perform poorly in online schooling is because they don’t have strong time-management and independent-learning skills. We’re all used to sitting in a classroom and being forced to pay attention to the teacher. With online school, we’re given more freedom but many students may not have the discipline to manage their work on their own without a teacher’s guidance.

   In-person classes allow students to perform better due to the proximity of teachers. If students need help or have a question, they can stay after class, an option that is not always feasible if the teacher has to start another Zoom class. On campus, students can easily go to their teacher’s classroom before school, after school, or at lunch. With distance learning, there are limited office hours available for students to make contact with their teachers.

    Finally, with online school, students can easily lose motivation after sitting for hours in front of a computer screen each day. With nothing new or excitin to look forward to, students cease to to have the drive to succeed, thus leading to lower grades.

   As much as distance learning may arm a majority of students, there is a small percentage of students who are doing better online than they pre-pandemic. These students most likely aren’t comfortable within the school environment or are naturally self-starters and independent workers. Being online helps some students avoid bullying, and allows them to work wihtout interruption. 

   Excel High School, an online high school diploma program, states that students who are highly disciplined benefit from being able to work at their own pace and schedule. But this type of student is not in the majority.

Until the coronovirus pandemic ends, we are stuck with online learning and it is up to the students who struggle to reach out to school faculty and support staff when they when they need academic help or are feeling unmotivated. While grades may be lower than they would be if schools were open, students should be encouraged to stay involved and keep trying – even when they feel lost and unmotivated.

Eventually, we’ll all be back in school and we’ll wish the teachers weren’t watching us so carefully.