KUWAIT: Recently, news has started to discuss the spread of mpox, which was recently announced by the World Health Organization, warning about its increasing spread. Given what the world has experienced in recent years, not far from recent history, such as the COVID-19 pandemic that turned the world upside down, affecting different aspects of people’s lives. One of the key aspects that witnessed a major shift in its ways is education as it turned to online learning.
Thus, the question arises: Could the spread of mpox potentially push us back to online education? Since digital transformation is not far from our current reality, whether or not mpox is present, Kuwait Times interviewed PB Coordinator at a private school in Kuwait, Abir Fares, and High School English teacher at a public school in Kuwait, Ghadeer Ghafour to gain opinions and insights into Kuwait’s educational position on this shift and the possibility of moving towards online learning.
Fares reflected on her first experience with online teaching during COVID-19, saying: "The first experience with online teaching during COVID-19 was a remarkable journey of adaptation and growth for both teachers and students. While it presented challenges, it also highlighted the incredible resilience and creativity of educators and learners alike. Teachers embraced new technologies and found innovative ways to engage students, while students demonstrated impressive adaptability and eagerness to learn in a virtual environment.”
She also elaborated on the preparedness for a potential second wave of online education. "The experiences from the first wave have equipped us with valuable insights and strategies, enabling us to enhance our digital tools and teaching methods. We now have a stronger grasp on how to effectively manage online classrooms and support student learning remotely,” said Fares.
Moreover, Fares spoke about the support and resources that she believes are necessary for teachers to successfully transition back to online teaching if needed. "To ensure a smooth transition back to online teaching, teachers would benefit from access to comprehensive training on digital tools, ongoing technical support, and a robust network for sharing best practices. Providing resources such as updated teaching materials, engaging online platforms, and mental health support for both educators and students will also be crucial,” she added.
To enhance both teacher and students experience in the future, Fares suggested a few improvements. "Future improvements to online education could include more interactive and personalized learning platforms, enhanced opportunities for real-time collaboration, and increased accessibility to high-quality resources. Investing in professional development for teachers and creating more engaging, student-centered activities will also contribute to a richer and more effective online learning experience,” she said.
On the other hand, Ghafour shared her past experience, highlighting a number of challenges that were encountered during that time: She said: "Online teaching lacks face-to-face interaction where students get along to engage in spontaneous conversation. This is important to build in natural and develop discussions with their classmates. It was also difficult for students to stay motivated as they have easily lost interest. When it comes to teacher, we had limited access to resources that support us to deliver our message to the students”.
"Many times, teachers and students encountered technical issues, which disrupt the learning experience. Online classes require isolation where students should have a room to avoid any kind of distraction. Unfortunately, not all students may have their own space to learn. Another major issue we were facing at that time was students’ cheating. Online teaching facilitates cheating where students are more likely to cheat since they are not physically monitored by an instructor or a teacher. Therefore, I strongly believe that online teaching is not the best method of teaching as it weighs a lot of drawbacks,” Ghafour explained.
Thus, the challenges of online education initially caused fear and anxiety among educators, but at the same time, they served as a foundation to identify the weaknesses in online education. Accordingly, adjustments must be done to ensure that both teachers and students could have a better educational experience. Especially since online education has become a part of our reality, even if it is not widely adopted today, it remains present and is not far from being an established method of teaching.