The modern households of today’s generation have taken the concept of technical aid to a whole new level and one of the best uses been put to is education and people are using E-Learning to provide the best options for their kids as well. But the real question is are our children too young to be introduced with this vast source of knowledge? Is it too much for them to take in? Will it shake their foundation of learning or are we simply worrying too much and instead should keep faith in this virtual god? Is eLearning that effective after all for these very young minds? We can think too much and yet not come to a conclusion but then that’s what we are here for. So let’s discuss how is it a help or not, to preschoolers.
Pros
- Interactive and creative learning– Let us talk about why we should go for it. Now we know that a human brain learns fast when it enjoys doing that task. Creative learning can be linked to visual and rhythmic activities in a human being. The same way goes with kids, their mind needs something that amuses them even when they are learning. Many learning apps like Hoopa city and Alphabet Flashcards and websites have such contents that not only draw kids’ attention to them but also make education fun for them. So they learn fast and well.
- Safety of children -We can see how some of the bigshots are getting their children homeschooled, what could be the reason for that! Possibly safety. Preschoolers are very small to be sent out risking their health and safety. With the added effect of COVID-19 all over the world, parents are highly scared of their children being exposed to the virus. So parents prefer online classes at home so that their kids don’t have to miss out on learning and developing at the cost of their safety
- Flexible time-table- Parents can adjust the time-table according to them as per their convenience if the sessions are not scheduled previously and not worry about missing classes. Even if kids miss the classes, they can watch the recorded sessions at home. Thanks to E-Learning Modules.
- Accessibility- Kids living in remote places, many times have to compromise with their education either because there are no schools near to their homes or the quality of education in the schools is not favorable. Or many times, kids are not able to attend school due to bad weather conditions. In this case, E-Learning helps a lot.
Cons :
- Lack of Basic human interaction- Kids can find it difficult later to adjust in the real-life as they had been habitual to the virtual environment. Interaction is the key element in building up confidence in a human being, children are usually deprived of that due to homeschooling so when they grow up it becomes a major hurdle in their personality development.
- Violation of discipline- A kid must know discipline from a very early age so they inculcate it in their lives as they grow up. With the advantage of attending the classes when and where they want to, discipline seems to fade out. Kids are more likely to procrastinate and not learn how to be punctual.
- Compatibility- Many times some students have a high grasping while others don’t, but the speed of the classes is the same for all making it tough for students to catch up. This is much easier when kids learn through offline options.
- Emotional Development of kids -We know the difference between education and literacy, so do we want to only make these toddlers literate, or do we want to educate them. School and teachers educate us and they teach us other greater lessons than the course content. Real-life experiences are important for kids. They need to learn things they can’t learn sitting in front of a screen inside the four walls of their rooms. E-learning deprives kids of the significance of emotional touch in the name of advancement.
These points are enough to make us think about the choice we make for our children as their minds are fragile in this age and it’s like a clay we can mold into anything. This is the foundation of their life and well being which is going to stay with them all their life. So eLearning or not, the prime concern is the overall development of our kids. There needs to be a balance between this new way of learning and the old style of delivering education. Only a perfect blend can save the future generation from becoming robo kids.
This is very helpful, well what I do for my kids during this pandemic is that they have a teacher(human) who teaches them via zoom and classroom dojo. This helps to reduce some of the cons. I feel it will be helpful to other parents.