Online education platforms get mixed reviews

AMMAN — Ever since the suspension of schools on March 14th in light of the COVID-19 pandemic, students have been using online platforms to keep the education process going until things go back to normal.

Moneer Anan, who lives in Amman and has a child in ninth grade, said that his son uses the Darsak platform, which includes basic subjects, including mathematics, Arabic, English and the four scientific subjects of physics, chemistry, biology and geology.

“My son did not need my help at all, he just followed the Education Ministry’s guidelines to access the platform and every day he accesses different lessons… each day he finds something new,” Anan said.

His son Ahmad said: “Every day I open the Darsak platform and watch the videos it has. There are different companies that provide the lessons and we get to choose the one that we are comfortable with, it is easy and I understand when the teachers on the video explain things.”

“There is another platform called NoorSpace, I do not fully understand how to navigate it yet, but we access it using our national ID number and it gives us the name of our school, notifications on homework we have and deadlines to submit the homework,” he added.

According to Ahmad, his teachers at school have also been in touch with the students through WhatsApp, helping them and explaining to them the things they do not fully understand from the platform, integrating direct interactions and instructions through chat, while supporting the process of remote education.

While Ahmad uses the platforms on his own, Raneem Alkhatib, who lives in Zarqa and has two daughters in the seventh and third grade, said while Darsak platform offers great support, allowing them to study at their own place, the platform has some issues that need to be addressed.

“The Darsak platform is very easy to use, you just access, choose a grade and then see the videos and subjects available for the day, however, NoorSpace is a little confusing, but the main problem is that not all teachers are following-up properly,” Alkhatib said.

“NoorSpace needs to ensure that teachers commit to following up on homework and should make them commit to teaching our children. I spend a lot of time teaching my daughter. My son is in kindergarten and has his own WhatsApp group that I have to keep tabs on every day, and I still have house chores to do, so I cannot do my job and teachers’ work as well,” she said, noting that most days when she spends a lot of time helping her children learn, it delays her own chores, such as cooking and cleaning.

Mohammad Alkhatib, whose daughter is in the second grade, also reiterated that it took him a while to be able to submit homework on NoorSpace but the teacher did not figure out how to receive it.

“I think the platform needs some work, it could use an instruction guide or perhaps a video for parents and teachers,” he added.

The Education Ministry on Sunday issued a statement addressing parents, in which it said: “Honourable parents, we believe you are the main partners with us in the education process and the Ministry of Education hopes you will follow up with our children and students to receive their education through platforms and TV channels for their benefit.”

The statement also said: “The ministry understands the size of the responsibility imposed on each one of you and appreciates your care for the benefit of our children and the efforts you exert. Our well wishes for all and hopes to soon overcome this exceptional period with your support and awareness.”

The comments on social media echoed the difficulty in using the NoorSpace platform.

“We have basic mobiles, our Internet is weak and we do not have laptops, this is too much to bear,” Um Muath Al Khawaldeh commented on the statement on the ministry’s Facebook page.

“Please resolve NoorSpace’s issues, we do not understand how to access it. Some student are already studying and taking exams while others do not even know how to access the platform. The Internet needs to become free too, the platform is taking up a lot of bandwidth,” Dunya Al Amal commented.

Other comments also suggested that the process of remote education should continue without grades and exams until all users master it.