What does online learning do to you? Does it make your education better or worse? I have personally been through it. Moreover, it was a different experience. You should ask yourself, how does online learning affect your world? How does this affect you? Has ¨Reconecting…¨ ever affected you? Its affected thousands of kids and their education. So here is the big question: Does distance learning positively or negatively impact you? 

Online learning has upsides and downsides. Let us start with the good. It is very efficient. Concentration can become challenging in a regular classroom because you talk with all of your friends. If they are hungry, they go outside and eat. Still, you can eat while you work with online classes, and you will be focused. I think that not only does online learning make kids more efficient but more responsible and independent. Online learning is excellent for accessibility of time and place, "It also allows schools to reach out to a more extensive network of students, instead of being restricted by geographical boundaries" (Gautam, 2020). That means it can make kids from China learn from a school in Kenya without struggling because they will do it virtually. I think that online learning makes it easier for many kids abroad. They will not be stressed about not being in an actual school, and they may fall behind. Still, nobody will be in the classrooms, so they do not have to worry about their academics.

It is also suitable for affordability. "[T}his is because online learning eliminates the cost points of student transportation, student meals" (Gautam, 2020). It is cheaper to do Online Learning because going to school includes many expenses like travelling on a school bus and paying for school meals. It is also better for the environment with less pollution from cars and busses and less paper being used, which leads to less deforestation. Online learning can save money for the students and their families and the school because they do not need to get students meals ready and get more textbooks and such for them as they use virtual ones. Virtual learning suits a variety of learning styles. E-learning goes well with everybody's learning styles, if you like big groups, you can go into a breakout room, and you can if you want to work alone. If you do not like people staring at you, you can turn off your camera. Virtual classes can be moulded into what your learning style is.

Online learning has its upsides. Now let us talk about the downsides of it. Let us start with the worst part of online learning—technology issues. For example, if a student mishears something because their screen freezes, it could mess up their complete understanding. If it is young children, they might not even know how to use the electronics. ¨Children and adolescents spend much time watching screens, including smartphones, tablets, gaming consoles, TVs, and computers. On average, children ages 8-12 in the United States spend 4-6 hours a day watching or using screens, and teens spend up to 9 hours¨ (Screen Time and Children, 2022). "Many parents are concerned about the health hazards of having their children spend so many hours staring at a screen. This increase in screen time is one of the biggest concerns and disadvantages of online learning. Sometimes students also develop bad posture and other physical problems due to staying hunched in front of a screen." (Gautam, 2020). Screen time is a big issue. Online classes make more screen time leading to kids and teachers ruining their eyes. Kids are already on electronics way too much; imagine what it would do to them with more hours of screen time!

Students can get very distracted, especially at home, with no teachers to tell them to get off their phones and stay on task. I think that is true. Often, students will be on their phones or not even there during their online classes. It can affect students learning and understanding in a wrong way. The worst thing about online learning is the sense of isolation. It is unhealthy to be in self-isolation. Furthermore, without friends and teachers around, you are alone, and it is not suitable for your mental health. You have to interact with other people to have good mental health.

In my opinion, online learning has a positive and a negative impact. E-learning can be the right thing for you, but it could be wrong. It depends on you, your background and your life. For example, online classes suit me well because I do not like waking up early, and it takes me a while to get ready for school; so I have to wake up early, but with online learning, I can go to class in my pyjamas because who is going to know? It suits me because it is more comfortable for me. However, it could be not very pleasant for you. For example, if you do not have your room, and your sibling shares the room with you, they are also in the class, you might not hear the teacher or the wifi will not work. It can be challenging for some people. Where would you write it? Or, if you do not have a device, how would you know what to do? 

In conclusion, online learning has positive and negative impacts on us; it is up to you to decide which one you like better. It suits various people, but it also does not fit many people. Online Classes could be better than face-face school for some and worse for others. Nevertheless, let us try and prevent online learning by wearing our masks because even though e-learning could be better or worse than face-face, it is here because of Covid19. So let us learn, virtual or face-face, how to sanitise, wash your hands and end this pandemic.