Barely three months after a long-awaited return to campus, students at select Delhi University colleges have once again been invited to take online lectures, tutorials and labs; at least until the first week of June. A common reason cited by colleges, in different published notices, is lack of classroom space due to ongoing exams for second and third year students. But how are freshmen accepting this change?

No more back and forth in hot weather

Komal Singh, an English student (Hons) at Dyal Singh College, says, “Online courses have both advantages and disadvantages. On the one hand, it seems like a big relief because it kind of serves as a much-anticipated summer vacation that freshmen won’t get now. So it’s good that we don’t have to travel in this heat to universities. But, at the same time, it will also interrupt the flow of our studies because we all know how monotonous online courses are and we have tolerated them for two years. After so long when we finally got a glimpse of our vibrant college and offline classes, here we are again with the black screens. It’s okay if it’s only for a month, but it shouldn’t be extended any longer and teachers should go deeper into the topics we covered online once everything is offline again.

Will help stabilize attendance for some

“All I did in the first month was layered classes to be with friends and be part of society. So I’m quietly excited about the online mode as it might stabilize a bit my attendance (smiles),” says Shirley Goodwin, a first-year English student (Hons) at Sri Guru Tegh Bahadur (SGTB) Khalsa College, who is relieved to have a break from her regular college studies. She shares, “ The first month of living alone in a totally foreign city has been exhilarating but equally overwhelming and it’s nice to have the opportunity to be back in my hometown (Kanpur) for a break. wanted to take a break from my PG’s catering services!”

Offline activities are already missing!

Pulkit Kashyap, a freshman BA (Prog) student at Rajdhani College and an avid photographer, says he misses going out on campus with his camera. He shares, “I am very passionate about photography and want to hone my skills every day. And since college is back online, I miss photography. Even the streets are beautiful in the evening, in summer, and I could have captured all that beauty if it had been the bahana to go to university.

Better have more study time

“Our university notice said that due to the exams, our university would not be able to conduct classes in offline mode for us, and the increase in Covid cases is another reason,” says Shreya Gupta , a first-year BCom (Hons) student. at Atma Ram Sanatan Dharma College (ARSD). Sharing how this setup has made it easier for her to work for her company, Enactus, she adds, “University has gone online for us. Right now there isn’t much work honestly because even second and third year students are busy preparing for their exams but for the work we have it’s a little easier to use this time . Because by staying home, we have a lot more leeway to focus on all of our social work commitments.

Author tweets @siddhijainn

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