The Effects of Online Learning: How COVID has Impacted our Motivation

By: Levon Grigoryan ‘25

Without a doubt, things just aren’t the same anymore. Ever since students were forced to stay home and go through online learning, their expectations of what high school would be like have changed drastically.

To most teachers, this change was not only huge but also discouraging. During Zoom classes, assignments were way more lenient than now. It was easier to slack off, play games, watch movies, even eat in class - you name it. Students soon realized that it was easy to not take responsibility. Academically, this mindset wasn't good to begin with. It also isn't a good mindset for returning middle school students who are going into high school. We aren’t in the era of online learning anymore, meaning that expectations are stricter. But can we regain our motivation to try and learn?

Well of course we can! It's so easy to slip into a tunnel of procrastination; who would want to go through the trouble to learn? The answer is very few people, and it's been quite obvious that students have become lazier when it comes to education, especially after COVID. It just doesn’t hold the same value as it did back then. One very obvious example is PE. During COVID, students did little to nothing and many PE teachers struggled with motivating their students. Students would turn their cameras off during exercises and make up excuses. It became a “free period,” where kids did whatever they wanted.

However, now that we're back, that same lack of motivation has stuck with them. Students aren’t trying during their warm ups, and aren’t doing any running around the field. All the activities are the same every single day: volleyball, basketball, racquetball, and sometimes dodgeball if it's available. Before, students would complain that PE is too hard. Teachers expected us to do push ups, pull ups, and meet certain strength requirements. Now, students are graded on whether they participate in the sports above.

What can we do to avoid such lack of motivation in school concerning all subjects? Both students and teachers must work together in order to bring back our rigor. They should find a shared goal. Once students understand where they want to go with that goal, they can figure out how to get there. If you don’t know what you want to be in the future, how will you know what classes to take to get there?

As for education, once you figure out what you want to major in and what university you want to go to, then you begin to see a future path. Once you have a reason behind your need for education, you’ll start working towards it. You know it will get you what you want. Take the classes you need to achieve that goal and work towards it, keeping that goal in mind. Even though Zoom and online learning took our focus off our goals and instead put it in video games and other distractions, now is the time to get our heads out of this mindset and get back to reality. Find a purpose and you will have more than enough motivation to do anything you want.