Students are feeling a bit more pressure now that schools and universities are slowly reverting to their old ways of teaching.
In the beginning of 2020, the threat of Covid-19 led to students and teachers holding virtual classrooms which was made possible via online platforms.
For the most part, teaching and learning activities which were usually conducted face-to-face in classrooms were managed online.
At first, students felt that it was hard for them to adapt to changes, but as time passed, they accepted and embraced cyber learning and education.
After more than two years of online learning, students were faced with another change, which was returning to physical classes even though they had become comfortable with online learning.
There is now a sudden shift in their comfort zone, and this creates anxiety among students as they feel that they have to readjust.
Not only that, students of different ages also perceive academic pressure differently when it comes to shifting back to face-to-face classes.
The learning environment plays a pivotal role in the academic lives of students. Any changes to it can have an impact in many things, including their psychological state.
When students were forced to learn online, they familiarised themselves with the environment and became comfortable in it. However, face-to-face classes evokes a different environment.
This gradual shift means that students deal with academic stress in different ways, leading some of them to feel more stressed and depressed.
It is, however, a debatable topic when it comes to which kind of learning method is better. Online learning has its pros and cons and the same goes for physical learning.
So, whichever method is used, we must give time for students to adapt.
JAYSHREE NAIR INDRAN
Faculty of Business & Communication,
Universiti Malaysia Perlis
The views expressed in this article are the author's own and do not necessarily reflect those of the New Straits Times