Traditional Learning vs Remote Learning

Written By Guest User

In January of 2020, most students would wake up early and attend school in person. This method of learning, referred to as “traditional learning,” was the most common before the COVID-19 pandemic. Two months later, learning was revolutionized out of a need to ensure student safety. Traditional learning was replaced with “remote learning.” To be specific, it was replaced with “remote synchronous learning,” which simply means that students receive the same instruction at the same time their classmates do. Both traditional and remote learning have their pros and cons, so picking between them is more nuanced than it might seem.

“learning was revolutionized out of a need to ensure student safety.”  

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Traditional Learning

Although some students were less fond of going to school before the COVID-19 pandemic, plenty of students began to miss the typical in-person school experiences. These experiences included anything from rushing to complete an assignment during the lunch period, to joking with friends about how “great” the lunch food was. Such small experiences are what define traditional learning, since attending school is not merely about learning math formulas or writing essays - it is also about having meaningful interactions with peers and practicing social skills. Interactions aren’t limited to peers, however. Students have the same meaningful interactions with their teachers, which enhances learning. The same is applicable inversely. Through traditional learning teachers can ensure students are on task and learning. So, it comes without saying that the most prominent benefit of traditional learning is that students are wholly immersed in a learning environment.

“school is not merely about learning math formulas or writing essays - it is also about having meaningful interactions with peers and practicing social skills.”

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Remote Learning

For practical purposes, there’s no doubt that remote learning has more benefits than traditional learning. For instance, most schools modified their schedule so that students don’t have to be in front of a computer for eight hours daily. Accordingly, less “school” time means that students have more time to study, complete assignments, and even catch up on sleep. Thus, making flexibility the best feature that remote learning has to offer. After all, as the saying goes, “time is money.” Unfortunately, many people don’t know how to use either of those wisely. Some students may lack the motivation to study by themselves, which, when combined with more free time and less supervision, has an undesirable outcome on their learning. For that reason, remote learning is not for every student. In the end, a good indication that full remote learning will be beneficial to a student is if they are self-motivated to study and learn on their own. 

“In the end, a good indication that full remote learning will be beneficial to a student is if they are self-motivated to study and learn on their own.”

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Adapting to a Different Educational Landscape

Ultimately, the COVID-19 pandemic has necessitated a change in the way students learn. However, with the proper adaptations, students should be able to continue learning in a manner that’s suitable for them. Such adaptations involve options like hybrid learning, or simply giving the students and their parents the choice to decide between traditional or remote learning. These changes ensure that each student learns in the most effective manner, whether it’s traditional or remote.

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