One of the most important ways in our approach to education today is non-formal learning. But how exactly has NFL (non-formal learning) changed our life nowadays or my way of seeing things during this pandemic? Well for starters, my daily routine has changed almost completely. Instead of waking up and getting ready to go to school I have my classes in my room. Thanks to this Zoom app I get to keep going on with my studies. The way we get to communicate with our teachers is way different from what I was used to in my school. Instead of, for example, addressing to my teacher with Sir or Miss, I get to communicate by using their name because both me and the teacher are on a more equal level then we used to be in school. This, I think, is very helpful for both parts. But one thing I am afraid has happened to all of us is not being able to focus during Zoom classes. For example, in a classroom the teacher can manage to keep everybody focused, but in online classes this is kind of difficult. Some students may not even enter in the online classroom or be in there and just wandering around not paying enough attention. Maybe the teacher is talking too much and giving too much information so the student finds it hard to keep focus. This has happened to me as well. What I think we as student should do is try to be more patient and don’t lose interest during classes because in the end is what we need. And maybe the teacher could try to select the most important information needed for a student and try to use some practical and fun ways of giving the information. So after finishing my online classes I need to think of different activities that will keep me busy during the rest of the day. What I usually do is: listening to music, reading a book, maybe try some workout routines, watching a movie, spending quality time with my family, learning a new language, spending some time on social media etc. What I found difficult during this pandemic was not being able to meet my friends, but the good thing is that I still communicate with them through social media and we video call each-other and talk about everything that’s happened. The most important thing is to be present, so we can be there for one another whether be it in sad or happy situations. The pandemic also changed me into being more approachable towards online learning which I think is quite useful. I can choose the information that is more suitable for me and I can get this information wherever there is internet access. What we should be careful of is avoiding the inappropriate content that we can find online and one way of doing this is by minimizing the time spent online or pay attention to the description given before reading the content.
Written by Joan Bushi, 23, Student at University of Computer Science
YAMNFL Project Partner: Youth 4 Society, Albania
