What education looks like post-pandemic

As Utah State University shifts from being held online back to in person, students reflect on the changes in their education methods.  

Mid-way through the spring 2020 semester, all classes statewide were shifted to online with almost no notice. Professors across all departments had to adjust in order to stay on schedule for the end of semester.  

Jaxton Winder, a senior studying computational mathematics, started school in the fall of 2017. Through his time at USU, he has seen classes shift from being held in person to online and now back to in person.  

“Spring 2020 was messy,” Winder said. “As was fall 2020. The adjustment was hard for the professors to adapt to. Some taught classes with the same structure as in-person classes and gave exams the same way as in-person classes, which was extremely difficult online.” 

Despite this frustration, Winder said overall it has been handled well because USU professors are passionate about educating.  He explained that multiple of his professors went above and beyond to ensure everyone in the class was getting the most out of the online coursework.  

Winder also saw the positive side of the shift to online classes.  

“It increased accessibility to course material, especially for students with learning disabilities,” he said.  

Winder said this was due to lectures being recorded, notes being posted in parallel to said lectures and office hours being available over Zoom. 

There are multiple methods of course delivery the university utilized during 2020, most of which are still used to some degree.  

These different methods include traditional face-to-face, hybrid face-to-face, interactive broadcast, online only, web broadcast and blended delivery. 

Winder said hybrid is his preferred method of class delivery because it allows students to have the option of going in person for an interactive experience, as well as giving them the flexibility to rewatch lectures and miss class if needed.  

While Winder is approaching the end of his college career, Joshua Herrin is just starting his major in psychology.  

Back in the spring, Herrin had picked all in-person classes for this fall. However, two weeks before the semester began, one of his classes changed from in-person to broadcast without notice. 

“The only reason I found out is because my girlfriend’s brother is a psych major, and a bunch of his classes changed,” Herrin said. “Only one for me, but three out of his five changed to online.” 

Herrin said he preferred in-person classes overall and was frustrated by the change. He intentionally only picked classes that would be taught in person.  

Herrin did not like broadcast classes as much as in-person classes. 

“It’s really disconnected. It’s awkward; it’s kind of in person, but kind of not. It’s my least favorite class now just because I don’t like the disconnect,” Herrin said. 

Winder said despite the benefits and flexibility that online resources provide, he feels the university has an agenda to get courses back to in person. 

“The best thing that could come from the pandemic is taking all of that growth we had and applying it to education going forward,” he said. “But we’re almost regressing just so the university can get butts in chairs.” 

-Sara.Prettyman@usu.edu

Featured photo illustration by Heidi Bingham