Is modern technology bettering or worsening the student experience?

Photo Courtesy: @anniespratt on Instagram

Since the start of the pandemic, the shape of learning has changed in many ways. The introduction of online learning platforms is nothing new: Moodle, for example, was introduced in 1999 and has been a staple of UCL for many years. Nowadays, the use of technology across all degrees is more prevalent than ever. 

But is technology truly improving the student experience? Or are the previous divides within the population only growing with the move to online sessions?

Technology has become an equaliser 

We still face many issues when it comes to achieving an equal and welcoming environment at university. This becomes more apparent when it comes to disabled students. The Office for National Statistics found that only 17.8% of students who are classified as disabled attain a degree, as opposed to 42.5% of those who are classified as not disabled.

As such, it is important to provide accessible arrangements, ensuring disabled students are able to attend university. Whilst the Equality Act provides rights to students who are disabled, they are typically left at the mercy of the departments they are studying at. The Office for Students “Beyond the Bare Minimum” report found that only 8% of universities were committed to recording all lectures for their students, with only 29.8% of universities stating that their teaching and learning spaces were fully accessible to disabled students. 

Whilst the pandemic prevented students from being on campus, it did introduce a greater need for accessible teaching arrangements. Disabled students were able to learn in the comfort of their own (easily accessible) homes. This was a welcome change as students entering the pandemic were not supported, especially those requiring sign-language interpreters, as no provisions were made when distance learning was mandatory.

Are we truly learning? 

As the availability of technology has increased, so have the ways in which students can avoid actively learning. All anyone has to do these days is scroll on a social media platform and an advert will pop up, directing individuals to a new AI bot that can take notes for them or complete an assigned task in a much shorter space of time. It is not a surprise that students are seeking assistance with their workloads as contact hours and the sheer number of exams have continued to increase since the start of the pandemic.

This issue with workload is also mirrored within the teaching staff at universities. One of the many catalysts for the UCU strikes stemmed from the pandemic forcing workloads to go up, with little to no additional support. Teacher burnout had a noticeable impact, at times worsening the overall satisfaction of students who attended their courses.

Additionally, student accessibility to the necessary platforms shows how far behind we are. Nationally, around 18% of students lack access to a laptop or tablet. Whilst UCL may offer laptops to their students to use for limited periods of time, or even have schemes to provide a budget laptop for the academic year, little is made in terms of provisions for internet access. 

Are we headed in the correct direction?

I do support the return to face-to-face teaching sessions, especially after so many peers before me completed their entire degrees online. An ongoing court case shows that many alumni found their university experiences did not live up to the high standards set by UCL. The necessity to be on campus to attend teaching sessions places students in financial strain, especially as London is one of the most expensive cities for students to live in. 

However, I will offer a partial defence for online sessions. As a medical student, the majority of my sessions are onwards, learning from patients’ cases. When fourth-year medical students cover Cardiology at UCLH, the specialist services are not run in-house; rather, they are covered by Barts Heart Centre, which is 25 minutes away by public transport. In practice, this prevents a lot of students from attending sessions. 

But with the use of Teams’ Meetings, we now have access to the best lecturers and clinicians across the globe at the touch of a “Join Meeting” button. As such, technology has offered the opportunity to interact with specialists in the field as a standard at Medical School, and not just as a case of getting lucky with hospital placements.