Orwin’s article stresses the importance of students being present in a physical classroom if education is to hold its meaning. It is important to note that he does not refuse online class because he acknowledges that there are people that cannot access physical classes due to different reasons, such as being employed or deployed as a soldier. Therefore, in his argument, such education is better than nothing, but should not substitute the physical classroom education. In simple terms, the real classroom experience is critical in delivery and response of education. The teacher gets to understand his or her students as well as the students understanding their teacher.
The two agreeable points are that real classroom experience allows the teacher to revise their approach of teaching depending on the students. In addition, the teacher gets to improve in his or her delivery; therefore, the experience gets better with each interaction, which lacks an online classroom. The other point is that physical education has that human touch in that the teacher gets to know the behaviours of their students. The teacher understands how the students agree or disagree with him, or her as well as get interrogated, which is the essence of education.
On the other hand, there disagreeable points in the article. To begin with, online classes allow the teacher to see the students and put a voice to their names, unlike the argument put forth by Orwin that it is difficult to know the students. It is achieved using webinars where students can interact. The other point is that a student must be in the classroom physically for education to take place, which is subjective. The reason is that the advancement in technology has provided numerous resources online, which makes it possible for students to have elaborate notes on different concepts they are taught. In addition, they get to compare them, which facilitates a better understanding of the concepts.
Physical classroom education is essential but should not be used as a basis for not offering online classes because both facilitate education. The advancement in technology has allowed students to have access to numerous resources that eases their learning experience. Also, education institutions should not offer online classes for all courses because some of the courses would require physical interaction where students attend the labs. Lastly, the essence of education is to better society, and its yardstick should be not be based on its delivery.
Zhiwen Jiang CP373 Blog 