Overlooked points in the discussion about online class and face-to-face class: consideration from the viewpoint of pedagogy

Abstract

Due to the coronavirus crisis, schools and universities in Japan faced temporary closures. Online classes were introduced to schools and universities to tackle the situation. Many discussions arose over online classes and face-to-face classes, but they sometimes turned out to be unproductive. In this paper, three points are shown from the viewpoint of pedagogy for sorting out and improving the discussions.
The first point is the autonomy of learners. Under the coronavirus crisis, online classes were sometimes recognized as being in accordance with the traditional ‘chalk and talk’ teaching style. However, online learning had originally been promoted in the context of self-directed learning.
The second point is the view of curriculum. There are two views of curriculum: curriculum as a teaching plan and curriculum as what is learned by the students. In the discussions under the coronavirus crisis, the latter tended to be neglected. This led to problems such as lack of places for casual talk among students before and after the class and an overload of assignments.
The third point is physicality. In online classes, images of the teacher and the students are shown on the display. However, in reality, they have bodies and interact with their surroundings through them. By paying attention to this aspect, online classes can be enhanced.