Name : Najma Aliya Humaira

NIM : 1202619003
Class : 19 DA
Subject : Academic Presentation

College Students and Their Anxiety in Online Learning

College students’ mental health plays a very important role in their success and persistence at
their institution. When the students can manage their anxiety, they feel less pressure. If the
students remain anxious, they may not follow through with their academic studies. Also, anxiety
could complicate their physical and psychological states and persist after graduation, and it may
negatively affect their capacity to work in the future. Anxiety is part of normal human reactions
to stressful situations. Anxiety means an emotional state that is characterized by physiological
arousal, unpleasant feelings of tension, and concerns about bad things happening in the future.
Anxiety may appear alone or in combination with symptoms of other emotional
disorders[ CITATION HPa20 \l 14345 ]. In learning, anxiety is very common for both students and
teachers. Students’ anxiety entails fear or worries in threatening online learning situations.
COVID-19 has required universities and colleges the world over to adapt their teaching methods
to the pandemic and move away from traditional face-to-face learning. Because of the pandemic,
all institutions of higher education in Indonesia suspended in-person learning activities and
moved campus administration to lockdown. The majority of colleges and universities also faced
challenges with virtual classrooms in the teaching and learning. Online learning is a way forward
for the delivery of post-secondary in the time of COVID and to keep the machinery of higher
education moving. It is a common idea that any student faces anxiety during their college
experience, but the effects of anxiety can affect more than one’s test, but online learning has an
impact on students’ academic performance. In this case, all institutions have a role to overcome
student learning anxiety in online learning.
The study by Li et al. (2020) pointed out that the COVID-19 pandemic has created a significant
challenge regarding social interaction because working from home has become a common means
of avoiding this dangerous virus [ CITATION LiS20 \l 14345 ]. Setianingsih et al. (2019) asserted that
the COVID-19 outbreak has had a significant impact on the social system, specifically on the
learning process, because e-learning has become the only means of carrying out educational
activities[ CITATION Set19 \l 14345 ].

A study done by Abdul et al. (2021) discusses about Students’ anxiety regarding the use of the
online learning mode during the COVID-19 pandemic is related to three factors: offline
interactions on campus, learning motivations, and the shift in the learning mode. The study found
that the most prominent factor is that, although students are anxious about becoming infected by
COVID-19 while on campus, they do not strongly attempt to avoid friends who approach them
[CITATION Abd21 \l 14345 ]. Another study done by D. D. Biber et al. (2020) discusses about
Students who reported optimism, gratitude, and positive perceptions of transition to online
instruction following COVID-19 exhibited lower levels of anxiety. The study found It is
important for institutions to provide applicable resources and strategies that highly anxious
students can employ to help reduce their transition during such a pandemic [ CITATION Duk20 \l
14345 ] .

A study done by Aleksandar Kecojevic et al. (2020) discusses about the factors associated with
the increased levels of mental health burden among a sample of undergraduate college students
in Northern New Jersey. The study found the COVID-19 pandemic is making a significant
negative impact on mental health of college students. Proactive efforts to support the mental
health and well-being of students are needed.
The increased screen time of online instruction and the lack of face-to-face interaction have
affected many students’ mental and physical health, Lear said. In fact, increased screen time has
been linked to anxiety, depression and perceived attention problems. Some students’ social
anxiety has increased as a result of taking classes online, partially because online classes have
increased the pressure of looking presentable, Lear said. Unstable Wi-Fi, glitches and the natural
lag in Zoom calls can result in conversations being choppier, with interruptions happening more
often. Also, switching to online classes has negatively altered students’ sleeping patterns, and
many students have fallen into unhealthy sleep habits. A study found that Higher level of
depression were also significantly associated with loss of job, reduced wages, or work hours,
while difficulties in obtaining medicine and hygiene supplies were significantly associated with
increased stress levels according to Kecojevic et al. [ CITATION Ale20 \l 14345 ].

According to Brian Wind (2020) Although video calls have become an ideal solution to remote
learning, they often can wear on one’s psyche. Zoom exhaustion has become a real problem with
back-to-back online classes. Students may find video calls to be so draining because they’re
struggling to process nonverbal cues, such as body language or voice tone. This can cause
awkward silences or reduced interaction during online classes, making it harder for students to
ask questions or carry a conversation with a professor and for professors to engage students.
During a pandemic such as COVID-19, universities must attempt to balance academic teaching,
disease control, student housing, transition to online learning, and mental health promotion. The
university represents a home to students, integral to social relationships, identity, and their
routine, so it makes sense that students exhibited a high prevalence of anxiety throughout
COVID-19. In an article by D. D. Biber et al. (2020) stated that Students who are more
optimistic and grateful for the resources, abilities, and social support they already have during a
difficult situation (i. e, COVID-19) are more likely to approach and overcome said situation
successfully. Furthermore, students often struggle to transition effectively to online instruction
due to the disruption of their study and classroom routine. Also, in another article stated that it is
important for institutions to provide applicable resources and strategies that highly anxious
students can employ to help reduce their transition during such a pandemic.
It’s clear that the ongoing pandemic has utterly disrupted students’ education, impacting the
mental and physical health of countless students. But maybe the pandemic will be a good time
for policymakers, schools, teachers, and parents to rethink education. Currently, all institutions
primarily focus on traditional academic skills and remote learning rather than on real-life skills,
which are arguably more important for success in the future.
Although COVID-19 is negatively affecting students, the pandemic has given stakeholders the
opportunity to create a more effective method of educating future students.

References
Abdul. (2021). An Analysis of Student Learning Anxiety During the COVID-19 pandemic: A study higher
education. The Journal of Continuing Higher Education, 11.

Duke D. Biber, B. M. (2020). The impact of COVID-19 on college anxiety, optimism, gratitude, and course
satisfaction. Journal of American College Health, 4.

Kecojevic, A. (2020). The impact of the COVID-19 epidemic on mental health of undergraduate students
in New Jersey, cross-sectional study. COVID-19 and college students, 12.

Li, S. W. (2020). The impact of COVID-19 epidemic declaration on psychological consequences A study on
active Weibo users. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 17(6).

Pan, H. (2020). A glimpse of university students’ family life amidst the COVID-19 virus. Journal, 6.

Setianingsih, T. Y. (2019). Detection of multiple viral sequences in the respiratory tract samples of
suspected Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus patients in Jakarta, Indonesia.
International Journal of Infectious Diseases, 102-107.