Students are continuing with studies at home so that when school resumes, they will have covered part of the syllabus. However, with online learning, students can easily get distracted, and some even find it boring. Students share with The New Times tips to making online studies intriguing. Kenzo Kazura, 17 During this lockdown, it is hard to not get comfortable and forget your responsibilities, but what I do to keep myself from procrastination is that, I pretend I am at school. I decided to have a schedule as it will eventually help me with online learning and other activities. I do my best to try to follow each lesson and review what we learned from different classes, and other sources, to broaden my understanding. This keeps me creative. Activities like drawing, playing instruments, learning new languages, assist in refreshing my mind. -- Zoe Niyungeko, 17 Students these days feel discouraged, and they can’t be blamed for that. It is a different complete system to get used to. However, there is a way to keep students motivated. One way to do so, could be through encouraging students to share their current experiences. Through sharing, some students might feel less overwhelmed with the new learning style. Students can also come up with new lifestyles or strategies that can help them grow stronger and smarter, academically and mentally. Nothing beats working together as a team because it leads to prosperity. Students should aim at forming online teams with their colleagues to discuss issues that affect them and what will help them grow. -- Tafadzwa Warren Chirinda, 17 Getting online learners’ attention is crucial as this is how we gain knowledge, and it can easily be achieved with a few steps. For example, the workload that the teachers give us should be balanced and spaced to allow learners to have enough time to complete their tasks. This is important as it helps learners not to miss out and complete the given assignments. Students should also be involved in the education process. Classes should be kept interesting, for example, allowing breaks to do anything that excites the learners. -- Trisha Ndahiro, 16 Students are likely to get distracted since they are not in their usual school setting, therefore, maintaining attention may be difficult for many educators. Teachers must keep learning more interactive, like, asking questions after explaining a certain topic. This will help evade disruption. Also, teachers should use more engaging examples to explain their concepts, to catch learners’ attention. -- Jennifer Kayijuka, 16 Although online learning has its perks, it is also quite boring. These lessons should involve games. Personally, my attention is attracted by trying new platforms like ‘Jamboard’, and other interactive applications that help me stay interested in learning online. --
