The Pandemic COVID-19 and the Necessities of E-Learning
Dr.Ahmed Abd Aoun Abd Ali
Department of General Education
Cihan University-Erbil
Undoubtedly, the world is changing and moving towards curves that were not prevalent despite their existence before. Still, they were not receiving this much of attention and assurance that they are getting nowadays.
E-learning is not emergent and did not happen by chance within the process of teaching and learning in the world; e-learning is implemented in many western countries and the developed world with modern educational systems. E-learning is used not only in many universities but also used in kindergarten. As for the third world countries, it did not receive a large share of interest and appreciation due to the weakness of the technical and economic capabilities of the countries of this axis, not to mention the prevailing cultures that prefer face-to-face education to be the popular currency and the axis of its educational system.
But with the emergence of the pandemic (COVID-19) and the state of complete closure and the imposition of the principle of social divergence as a defence against the spread of Coronavirus, the problem of schools and universities appeared, and its emergency closure caused evident confusion among international and local organizations. The international organizations rushed to find solutions, and they had no choice but to resort to digital methods in light of the students' home quarantine. Here, e-learning emerged as "the "saviour of the teaching process and became the official champion and slogan at this critical period and sensitive stage of education around the world.
E-learning may be the official sponsor of saving education on the planet now. I am not against it, on the contrary, I believe in its goals and methods, and I encourage e-learning. However, researchers in this field realize that achieving the final goals of e-learning requires a robust infrastructure and a qualified teaching staff. Teachers should be well trained in remote teaching methods, strategies and obtain familiarity with the technical competencies necessary for learning management. Teachers also need to have full knowledge of integrated digital learning management platforms. Nevertheless, there are many questions regarding e-learning:
Can we achieve full integration in the distance learning programs that meet the needs of all learners, especially those with physical disabilities and those who suffer from psychological problems?
Is every learner going to be provided with a computer or a smartphone to ensure his continued education?
Are there fixed sources of electricity?
Are there groups whose primary mission is to secure human interaction and provide psychological and social support for learners?
Will appropriate curricula be prepared to teach for distance teaching?
Will there be technical and digital support to provide for learners and teachers?
Will there be rules for managing this learning with the ability to follow learners and their accomplishments?
Will the length of time for e-lessons be determined according to the learner's age group?
Is there a radio and television broadcast that can help in the success of the mission?
The list goes on because there are many other questions. Nevertheless, optimism is the dominant feature here.
The pandemic COVID-19 imposed a reality requiring a quick action in the educational sector. The entirely heading towards e-learning without preparing for it will generate pressure on learners and teachers, specifically in the countries that were not implementing it before. There are a challenge and stress because of the lack of psychological readiness to engage and immerse in this experience in addition to the refusal by many students, even teaching staff, and the development of various arguments and excuses, including the weakness of the Internet and the lack of digital media and other reasons.
The main idea is that working with e-learning is one of the dangerous things that have advantages. Still, even within normal conditions, there were a lot of problems and obstacles regarding e-learning, so what about now and the world is in a state of complete closure, students and teachers go through the stage of home quarantine. Certainly, there will be many problems, and I hope that those working in the field of education will overcome them because the primary goal of e-learning at this time is to help to reduce the disruption of education around the world not to mention ensuring the continuity of education. Also, to ensure that the student remains in contact with his school and university and that he does not lose hope in obtaining an adequate education, even at the minimum level that is permissible because of quarantine condition.