When the computer appeared for the first time, no one could have imagined or

predicted what an important role it would come to play in everybody’s life in no more
than several decades. Of course, the computer alone would not probably have such an
influence in people’s daily lives without the internet. As teenagers we have been
using the internet and the technology almost all our lives, yet we usually use them to
relax and have fun, as a way of entertainment. Most of the things we usually do are
listening to music, watching films, playing games as well as surfing various social
network sites. Yet when this pandemic crisis started, in March, we were faced with
using this technology for school activities and our connection with computers,
internet and other devices changed.
On one hand, there are the obvious advantages when having online school.
Firstly, as students, we felt that the “school day” flies by much faster than when
actually in school and that the time seemed more flexible as well. For some
assignments we also had what seemed more time to solve, which basically meant less
pressure for the students. Secondly, since technology was involved in the learning
process, as well as in the creation of some of the materials and the assignments,
which was not always possible at school, the learning became more appealing. For
example, at sport we had a friend make a film every week with us making exercises,
which I thought was fun and interesting. Finally, studying online gives each student
more independence and autonomy. In class, as part of a group we are taught the same
things at the same pace. At home, through online learning, we approached each topic
and subject in our own time and rhythm. I personally, devoted less time to things that
are easy and I can understand quickly, much less time than I would do in class, for
example. Similarly, when we were taught something more difficult, I probably
allocated more time than just an hour.
On the other hand, these three months have been quite challenging for me and
for many of my colleagues, and not always in the good sense. To start with,
sometimes we found technology to be more difficult to handle than we thought when
we used it only for entertainment. Whether sometimes it was a new application that
we needed to install and learn, whether it was an unknown file format, or maybe it
was a poor internet connection, or no connection at all, sometimes learning online
seemed hard and less enjoyable. Also, sometimes I felt I needed more explanations;
in class is quite normal to get that from the teacher, but here the feedback was not
always perfect. Finally, what I probably disliked the most about online learning is the
fact that, even in the case of online meetings (with Zoom, or Google Meet), we did
not have a real connection, as we would have had in the classroom. What we had
online was not really like meeting our colleagues and keeping in touch with them. So,
that close connection was missing.
In conclusion, these three months have been quite challenging and hard
sometimes. Yet, they were necessary as we were protected at home. Also, I liked that
I was faced with new things almost daily, and the new experiences showed me that I
can do more than I thought I was able to do.