I do additional courses from sites like LinkedIn, Udemy, TCSiON: Pratik, BITM

These are first-hand student accounts on how our young population is managing to keep their exam prep or college course work going from the confines of their homes. In case you want to share your lockdown study experience, write to us at publish@shiksha.com

Today, the official work as well as education, both have shifted to a concept called ‘Work from home’. In this, students and other people can work from their home via laptop with internet connection, webcam and a software application for video conferencing.

Talking about my experience of the online classroom and exams which is being conducted online via Teams App by my college is amazing and user-friendly. There is no need to prepare handwritten notes as the videos get recorded and can be referred to any time as and when required. Talking about the examinations, the entire process is smooth and transparent for faculties as well as the student. I have a deadline to submit my assignment for every subject. After the correction of assignments, viva is taken via video conferencing and then the grades are displayed in the dashboard for each subject.

The major difference between online and brick and mortar classes is the flexible timing and use of technology. My preference is online classes as I can sit in my home and attend the lectures as per my convenience. I do not need to get ready to go to college as I used to do before. Also, people are more familiar now with the use of technology around us. The queries are answered in the session itself and if not, I can personally write my queries to the concerned faculties in the app itself.

Yes, I would prefer online classes as it has flexible timing, everything is transparent, there are recordings for reference, and also, saves commuting time.

Some of the disadvantages of online classes are lack of internet connectivity and IT infrastructure, laziness while studying as there is no one to monitor, disturbance in the surrounding at home and so on.

The offline classes have an advantage of continuous monitoring of every student, we are physically present in the class, so, direct questions can be asked, we can avail various other facilities like libraries, labs, etc. in the college premise and we have got to meet our friends with whom we can talk, and study. The disadvantages for this traditional teaching are that I have to physically be present as per the official college timings in my classroom, make handwritten notes and assignments, etc.

When I get leisure time, I do some additional courses from online sites like LinkedIn, Udemy, TCSiON and many more. I also watch some videos as per my interest on YouTube for facts and summary. Also, I spend some time with family talking to them and helping them out. Therefore, in my free time, I learn some skills and pursue my interest and hobbies.

About the Author:

Pratik Anuraj has completed Post Graduation Diploma in Management specialised in IT/Systems (Telecom and Marketing) from Sri Balaji University Pune. He has also completed a Bachelor's Degree in Civil Engineering from Gandhi Engineering College, Bhubaneswar. He is also a Globally Certified SAP Associate in Sales and Distribution Module. He is enthusiastic about sports activities and technologies