There is plenty of existing research concerning the mental health of undergraduate students investigating common stressors, such as academic or financial issues. Where I found a bit of a gap was in the emotional aspect of the health of undergraduate students. The following research digs deeper into the actual emotions and feelings of undergraduates, especially during a pandemic.
Covid-19 Introduces Stress in Undergraduates
Coronavirus has led to changes in nearly everything people deal with on a daily basis. Millions of people are out of work and struggling with money, and countless are dead, worldwide. Vacations and holidays are cancelled. One significant difference is that schools having to be shut down and being moved completely online. Since the beginning of the pandemic, early April 2020 to mid July 2020, approximately 90% of actively enrolled students (1.5 billion from 185 countries) reported having done little to no educational activities because of the closure of schools and universities (Chandrima, Griffiths, & Mamun, 2020). Because of this new need to social distance and stay home as much as possible, schools have had to rearrange the set up of classrooms and change how they assign work. Some classes have students that are simply spread out further and others have been made completely remote. Regardless of how any individual classroom has changed, this pandemic led to a strong reaction among students who experience anxiety (Baloran, 2020). Undergraduates are already in the midst of a very hard time of their life; they are just becoming adults, starting a path to a future career, and beginning the rest of their life. College is also a common stage in life where people are tempted, and may begin experimenting with drugs and alcohol or different partners. All of this can be very stressful and can cause some people to react poorly.
After researching the knowledge and attitudes students have towards Covid-19, Erick T. Baloran reported that most students lack coping mechanisms for mental health and have said that the only thing that eased their mind, to the smallest degree, was wearing personal protective gear and staying in the house (Baloran, 2020), lacking any coping mechanisms directly relating to their mental health. It is clear that there is both a gap in research and a gap in the knowledge of how to help oneself cope with such anxiety inducing events. It has been reported that suicide rates of adult students has gone up since the start of the pandemic for various reasons including: testing positive for Covid-19, inability to return home due to traveling restrictions (including both across land and from overseas), inability to obtain alcohol for alcoholics, and reciveing grades that are worse than usual (Molchanova, Kovtonuik, & Savych, 2020).
Educators During a Pandemic
Teachers and professors across the country are stressed over the new changes just as much as their students are. The majority of educators are not trained to teach in a remote environment and are being forced to reconfigure entire courses and curriculums to meet the requirements, while still being safe. This has proven to be difficult as most teachers use the student-teacher interaction or group projects to be productive in the classroom. Because young people already spend most of their free time on cell phones or tablets, and their attention is less focused in general, (Molchanova, Kovtonuik, & Savych, 2020), a virtual learning environment competes with digital attention of the majority of the current student population. The new challenges are forcing universities to adapt to the changing learning conditions without diminishing their quality (Molchanova, Kovtonuik, & Savych, 2020). This is quite a predicament, as students are both receiving lower quality education and having a much harder time paying attention to and retaining the information being taught. Based on the existing research it would appear that virtual learning systems may not set students up for success. In fact, many students believe that they should not have to pay the regular tuition price because of the below par teaching methods (teachers are not to blame) (Robbins 2020).
Consequences of Online Learning
The new atmosphere of the classroom comes with a multitude of challenges, ranging from financial hardships to mental and physical exhaustion. In some instances, students and faculty had to make the shift to online learning in a matter of days. However, despite technological and emotional hardships associated with the switch to online learning, teachers and professors have to stay committed to supporting their students during this tough time (Zimmet, 2020). Though nearly everyone is having to make changes and adapt during this pandemic, there is plenty of room to grow and learn. Covid-19 has become a driver of change that has accelerated the process of moving schoolwork online (Molchanova, Kovtonuik, & Savych, 2020). It was bound to happen. Due to the decreasing health of the planet, there has been a move towards the use of online learning tools across all levels of the education system, but especially in colleges. (Doorn, Janssen, & O’Brien, 2010).
Moving textbooks and assignments online takes a lot of adjusting; students who grew up on paper and pencil may be having a hard time with new technological advances. Teachers go on lecturing without ever stopping to consider that their students have various obstacles regarding remote learning: asymmetrical access to technology, quiet spaces, and free time (Zimmet, 2020). Many students are not able to get the necessary tools to succeed in online learning. The first challenge is to assess the student’s access to internet connectivity. In a specific school in Asia, the students were expected to have a smart phone with 4G compatibility to enable streaming of the live teaching (Raju, 2020), which for many, is not possible. They also mention how the lack of hands-on learning could greatly affect the students understanding and ability to retain the information. Issues like these may set students up to fail and make them lose all motivation. Students of lower income families cannot always have a room or computer to themselves for a whole day of remote learning. Issues like this can be seen across various platforms, such as in the workplace and in schools; being poor may be a reason many people are not learning during this pandemic. For example, UCLA has a huge selection of physical resources that are not accessible due to the pandemic and social distancing regulations; that means that only online texts are available, which often exist behind a paywall, and for many students whom may not be able to move passed that paywall, it is proving difficult to learn course material and be productive during this Covid-19 infested semester (Zimmet, 2020). Low income children may have decreased access to opportunities, such as higher education and educational supplies to help their productivity, simply because of their economic situation, and especially during a pandemic. Remote learning is necessary for the current worldwide pandemic, but that does not mean it is effective or accessible for every enrolled student.
References
Baloran, Erick T. (2020). Knowledge, Attitudes, Anxiety, and Coping Strategies of Students during COV….:EBSCOhost. Retrieved from: https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/15325024.2020.1769300
Chandrima, Rubaiya Matin, Griffiths, Mark D., Mamun, Mohammed A. (2020). Mother and Son Suicide Pact Due to COVID-19 Related Online Learning Issues in Bangladesh. Retrieved from https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s11469-020-00362-5
Doorn, David J., Janssen, Susan, O’Brien, Maureen. (2010) Students Attitudes and Approaches to Online Homework. Retrieved from: https://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/EJ1136138.pdf
Honarvar, Behnam, Kharmandar, Ali, Lankarani, Kamran B., et al. (2020) Knowledge, Attitudes, Risk Perceptions, and Practices of Adults Toward Covid-19: A Population and Field-based Study from Iran. Retrieved from: https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s00038-020-01406-2
Kaspina, Nanigopal, Paul, Pintu, Roy, Avijit, et al. (2020) Impact of Lockdown on Learning Status of Undergraduate and Postgraduate Students During Covid-19 Pandemic in West Bengal, India. Retrieved from: https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0190740920310604
Konig, Johannes. (2020) Adapting to Online Teaching During Covid-19 School Closure: Teacher Education and Teacher Competence Effects Among Early Career Teachers in Germany. Retrieved from: https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/02619768.2020.1809650
Lyden, Meleah. (2020) Partying During Pandemic: Florida College Students Complain About Classmates Packing Bars, Parties. Retrieved from: https://www.sun-sentinel.com/coronavirus/fl-ne-ftf-partying-during-pandemic-20201023-awn7so64abexrau4666jkzciqy-story.html
Molchanova, Kovtoniuk, & Savych (2020). Covid-19 Presents New Challenges and Opportunities to Higher Education. Retrieved from: https://www.lumenpublishing.com/journals/index.php/rrem/article/view/2819
Raju, Harsha (2020). Covid-19 Lockdown Challenges to Higher Education . Retrieved from: https://www.researchgate.net/publication/341274523_Covid_-19_Lockdown-Challenges_to_Higher_Education
Robbins, Gary (2020). College Students Fume Over Having to Pay Full Tuition for Dubius Online Learning. Retrieved from: https://www.sandiegouniontribune.com/news/education/story/2020-07-12/college-students-full-tuition-online
Zimment, Jeremy. (2020) Redesigning (Virtual) Learning With a “Love Ethic” in the Wake of Covid. Retrieved from: https://content.iospress.com/articles/education-for-information/efi200004