{"id":16745,"date":"2021-02-01T11:15:29","date_gmt":"2021-02-01T16:15:29","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/news.elearninginside.com\/?p=16745"},"modified":"2022-01-17T16:58:42","modified_gmt":"2022-01-17T21:58:42","slug":"learning-or-surveillance-what-students-say-about-edtech-and-covid-19","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/news.elearninginside.com\/learning-or-surveillance-what-students-say-about-edtech-and-covid-19\/","title":{"rendered":"Learning or Surveillance? What Students Say About Technology and COVID-19"},"content":{"rendered":"

\u201cThe environment which we are now in is very artificial,\u201d says Maryam Mirza, a master’s student at the University of Sheffield, who has spent the majority of her degree using technology like Zoom<\/a> and Blackboard<\/a> Collaborate to communicate with her tutors. \u201cMy office hour meetings can be very awkward, and I find that having a typical discussion is hard without commenting on just how difficult this online interaction is.\u201d<\/p>\n

The pandemic shows no signs of waning this year, and many universities and K-12 schools alike have found that a remote classroom is the safest option they have in continuing education.<\/p>\n

Now in Their Third Semester of Remote Learning, Some Students Wonder Just How Well Technology Has Served Them\u2013or Surveilled Them\u2013During Covid-19<\/h2>\n

Though providing all the base components of what makes a classroom, some students feel they have drawn the short straw in this new digital environment. Access to teachers has been possible only through screens. In taking exams, many students have faced a stranger interrogating their every move through a camera. Some have begun to wonder whether such technology has served well for students in their learning experience as educators like to think they have.<\/p>\n

Conferencing platforms like Zoom and Microsoft Teams<\/a>, were never developed to be classroom tools. Initially, they were created for general video conferencing<\/a> like meetings and long-distance calls. It was only after the pandemic struck that they started to be appropriated for educational use. Yet, the broadness of their use seems not to have translated as astutely to the specific needs of students as the schools anticipated.\u00a0 On being asked about her experience with using Google Meet, Maryam Mirza reiterates, \u201cThere is less interaction with the teaching staff which I find difficult because I have found it is a lot harder to find help.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"Notes
Wulan Sari, Unsplash.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Mental and physical capabilities have taken a strain when using such tools, many experiencing the phenomena of \u2018Zoom fatigue<\/a>,\u2019 the feeling that online classrooms tend to cause more exhaustion in people than participation, leading them to be less focused and cooperative overall.<\/p>\n

When asked if Zoom and online classes had changed her learning experience for the better, a third-year Chemistry student from Sheffield Hallam University, Khalisah Jan, commented: \u201cI don\u2019t think it is for the better. We are losing valuable experiences from not being in a lab environment and gaining those skills.\u201d<\/p>\n

But While Many Students Voice Frustration with Zoom, Exam Proctoring Has Been Carrying Out Practices of Which Many Are Unaware<\/h2>\n

At least with video conferencing, students have the option to turn their webcam or microphone off if they want to. Such autonomy is not available in exam proctoring. Under Covid-19, many schools and standardized testing agencies have engaged online exam proctors. These companies\u2013like ProctorU<\/a>, PSI<\/a>, and Proctorio<\/a>\u2013monitor students while they take important tests.<\/p>\n

In December of 2020, the Electronic Privacy Information Center (EPIC) filed a complaint<\/a> to the District of Columbia, alleging that five leading providers in exam proctoring services were involved in \u2018unfair and deceptive\u2019 trade practices in violation with the D.C. Consumer Protection Procedures Act (DCCPPA). The services, Proctorio, ProctorU, Respondus, Examity and Honorlock, have been accused of excessively collecting students\u2019 biometric and other personal data whilst also relying on unreliable and biased AI analysis to detect alleged cheating.<\/p>\n

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8:43 PM<\/p>\n

This video from Proctorio's YouTube channel shows how the Abnormal Eye Movement function works. This is the one that will show you, beyond a doubt, the emotional harm you are doing to students by using this technology.https:\/\/t.co\/Wu5pWQlMCi<\/a><\/p>\n

— Ian Linkletter (@Linkletter) August 25, 2020<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n