After almost two years of online learning, Far Eastern University (FEU) Manila gradually opens its doors to its junior and senior students for lectures and laboratories, introducing the hybrid learning setup, which consists of both online and in-person classes.
Communication seniors who are due to graduate this year have missed out on a considerable amount of their college life which was inevitably affected by the pandemic.
As restrictions on the education system ease, students, especially seniors, are excited to attend their classes for one final semester before they enter the “real world.”
Jessa Doydora, a fourth-year Digital Cinema major from Quezon City, says she’s eager to study even more given that an in-person setup is the ideal learning environment for her.
“I’ve suffered enough time mentally just to be safe from the virus,” she said, and to her, the risks that come with attending classes physically are worth it.
In-person, finally
During the first day of in-person classes, Doydora said her energy shifted immediately and felt recharged. “For someone whose love language is physical touch, I am genuinely happy. With the online setup, I rarely open my camera or microphone—zero interactions at all. But in-person, I’ve been talking with a lot of people and became active in class discussion,” she said.
For Nickey Zacate, a senior Digital Cinema major from Caloocan City, said “It was a nostalgic feeling for me going back to school. It’s like I’m a freshman again.”
Zacate prefers in-person classes. “On campus you will feel your productivity in learning and it separates your workspace from your safe space and that will help your mental health.”
Portia Barrientos, also a senior student from Quezon City, said she’s excited to see her friends and build memories together. “Of course, I also want to learn in school but my desire to be with my friends is more dominant because I feel like I can’t complete my college life without making memories with them—happy, sad, funny or even the fights that will make you laugh afterward. I know those are the things I will go back to when I graduate,” she said.
Distractions everywhere
When the online learning setup was introduced at the beginning of the pandemic, the barriers between spaces where students study and where they relax became almost nonexistent.
Doydora said, “Distractions are everywhere when studying at home, especially for those who have family issues. You also have chickens crowing in the morning, neighbors having the time of their lives with the karaoke machine, dogs barking. Hearing all that while doing a report in class . . . it’s chaos.”
But online classes offered advantages for some students. Doydora said, “It’s beneficial for working students or students who have their own small businesses. Instead of choosing to do one thing at a time, I can manage to fix my clients’ orders while attending class.” Doydora runs a small business selling plants.
Zacate said, “It was fast and convenient for those of us who can have online classes but I wish every student in the Philippines also had that kind of opportunity.” A lot of students especially from the rural areas have struggled in coping with the online setup.
Time management
Barrientos said discipline when it comes to time management is very important for online learning. “All the work you do online can be a bit confusing and heavy because you’re doing all the work in the house where you’re supposed to be resting. You really need to make time for specific tasks and you also need to give time for you to rest.”
Online learning continues to be the main setup for most colleges and universities and many students, especially those in production courses, are losing out on important lessons.
Doydora said, “I should have met a lot of people and learned from them as I love listening to other people’s stories and bringing them with me . . . Aside from this, my art was also affected. I died as the pandemic started.”
Zacate shared he’s bummed out by the online setup, “especially because I’m a communication major. Our courses depend heavily on in-person productions to have good execution of filming our projects. But because of the pandemic we learned to be flexible and adapt to the current situation.”
Missing out
Before the pandemic, being part of the Far Eastern University Theater Guild took up a lot of Barrientos’ time. She ruminated about the things she missed out on. “I didn’t have the chance to meet and make a lot of friends aside from my org mates. I don’t have a picture of me wearing my uniform on campus.”
It’s important for her to be back in school, she said. “I also hope to watch a lot of events there.”
Socializing with friends and meeting new people have been one of the biggest problems that everyone, not only students, struggled with because of the restrictions put in place. Student did get to meet new classmates and friends through the online setup but, Zacate said when it came to see these online friends in person, “It was awkward to approach a classmate that I only met online.”
Barrientos feels the same way. “I don’t know if I’ll greet them or not because it seems a bit awkward . . . when it’s online, it’s easy to talk to people, but when it’s in person, it’s embarrassing to make the first move because there’s actual (physical) interaction.”
But meeting those new friends with open arms has been a sight to see inside the campus, as everyone felt safe with the safety protocols implemented by the university. There were shifting schedules, where from Mondays to Wednesdays, juniors are the only students allowed to enter the campus, and seniors have to take their classes online, while on Thursdays to Saturdays, it’s the opposite.
Sanitation areas
There were also sanitation areas, as well as trash cans specifically for discarding face masks. Each building also had its own time-in system where each student had to tap their IDs to register, which also aids in contact tracing. There are also different common areas where students can relax and wait for the next class while keeping themselves safe.
The university feels different, especially with the low number of students on campus at any given time. But it’s still a great feeling being back inside the campus where you grew to discover what you wanted to pursue in life.
In-person attendance is not required by the university but it says it’s highly recommended to maximize learning potential.
As different universities and colleges plan to reopen their schools, one thing is for certain, students prefer to study in-person rather than facing a screen all day.
Barrientos said, “I’m used to seeing the school full of students, now there are very few. Even on campus, you can feel something is missing . . . as if there is not much life inside.” —CONTRIBUTED