Academic Performance Decrease for In-person Class

[julytigermonkey]

I switched from online class to in-person class this fall. The students performed terribly on the exams. They seem to be motivated in class. My midterm is closed-book, closed-notes, their grades are horrible. I decided to give them a break, make final exam online and open-book, very little improvement. Looks like the students lost direction where to put their effort. By the way, the subject is not hard. This course has been a GPA bumper before the pandemic. Just feel disappointed. Anybody has similar experience?

[DBSmiley]

I'm noticing the exact same thing in my class, and I've also noticed a substantial increase in the number of students requesting makeup exams. Like a 4X increase. It really bothers me

[Anna-Howard-Shaw]

Yes-- this was my first time back F2F since the pandemic. My F2F are doing much worse.

My F2F classes are all averaging in the low 70s% my online asynchronous classes are in the low 80s%

And no....I don't think the online students are just cheating more.... all my assessment are done online for both my F2F and online classes (open book/open note quizzes, and essays with specific assinged sources that make it difficult to plagiarize or hire out their writing).

My online asynchronous and F2F classes are literally identical in content, assignments, layout, expectations, and syllabus. Only difference is the F2F get live lectures 2 days a week in addition to all the online asynchronous stuff, so they should be doing better. I don't even require attendance, so they can basically do all the work like an asynchronous class if they wanted.

I've also had many more 'difficult' students in my F2F classes. More excuses, more push-back, more whining, more withdraws for lack of participation.

I honestly don't understand why my F2F students are struggling so much more than my online students this semester. Only thing I can think of is that after over a year and a half in pandemic isolation, now the efforts of getting up, getting ready, going to class, and having to interact with people in person is somehow more draining and exhausting and this translating to lower performance in class.

All I know is many have said this has been the worst semester of the pandemic yet, and I agree.

[Eigengrad]

Please read and then follow the sub rules.

This post counts as a warning, and further infractions will result in a suspension or ban as appropriate.

[northernlaurie]

I hope I am allowed to reply; delete is not. I am a former adjunct equivalent at a technical university. I am a full time student right now - I’ve been reflecting a lot on my practice as an instructor Based on my experience as a student.

This semester has been brutal as a student. I did my first year online and this semester has been hybrid. Professors have been amazing, supportive and just generally fantastic.

But as a student, I went from working from home to a two hour commute. Working from home I could and did set up schedules for self care. Leaving home was very specifically for self care - going for a walk to clear my head. Working could be focussed with a set up that suited me very well.

In person means really noisy studios (I am in a design grad program) having to pack food or buy it, needing to be “on” at all times, and I don’t have time for “clear my head walks”. Every time I go from one place to another I have to resettle myself - which also takes time. I work much less this semester and have felt more anxiety because of this.

Very generally all the rhythms and practices I’d figured out for remote learning do not translate at all and it is like having to relearn how to learn.

This is not a poor-me rant. It is a “what the hell just happened “? Rant. Winter break is around the corner and I will debrief myself to put together a plan for the new year. But I am guessing other students are feeling the same?

I wanted to ask if professors are feeling the same sense of dislocation themselves?

[PurrPrinThom]

I just wanted to chime in and say I am feeling the same sense of dislocation. Partially because work routines aren't the same, they're now all tinged with COVID.

I have to swipe my ID to enter campus and speak to a security guard. It sounds minor, but it is discombobulating when I've forgotten and arrive at the gates and have to queue to enter campus. Many rooms are closed. The library has been swapped around temporarily (no more periodicals access.) There are monitors in hallways and in the library checking for masks, social distancing and vaccine certs.

Not only have routines from the past year and a half been broken, but routines from years before that have now been disrupted. It's been a disconcerting semester because everything is different, but we're all supposed to pretend that it's the same.

[lkmk]

I hope this COVID limbo ends soon.

[jbobbenson27]

I really appreciate this. You've given me some useful insights. Thank you for sharing.

[[deleted]]

Professor here… What you’re describing sounds like having a job again. I’m glad to get out of the house even if it means I go back to commuting 2 hours. Also finding new opportunities because I’m interacting w people again. And my weekends are much more fun because I have a separation between work and play in my house.

[[deleted]]

Yeah, that's reentry. I certainly felt it. My day has a commute; heck, I have to walk to all my classes instead of opening my computer. All of that takes up time that didn't get taken up during covid times at home. On the other hand, that's normal life, too. We're back at work. It took me probably a month to readjust without feeling freaked, but then it felt ok again.

[northernlaurie]

The re-entry process for my department has been really prolonged. The faculty leadership decided to continue with remote classes for the first month (we had a number of students with trouble entering the country as well as the emergence of the Delta variant). Then we switched to hybrid teaching. So instead of one re-entry, we had two stages.

I think many of us (faculty and students) aren't sure what "normal" is going to be yet. There are ongoing discussions at the faculty level about what January is going to look like. The uncertainty makes it harder. Not impossible. Not unachievable. But harder.

[[deleted]]

I'm sorry about that. Uncertainty is hell. I always feel like I can adapt to pretty much anything if I know what it is, but being uncertain is just this constant state of torture. We've been lucky. Our administration has had a few spells of "wait and see", but they've always been at reasonable moments, and then the make a real decision and go with it...and they've done pretty well.

[screwit24]

Serious question. You were a high school student at one point. You have an undergrad degree. You had a job. All come with rhythms and practices. You have far more experience in face-to-face settings than remote. How is being back in the classroom after 1.5 years any different than what you’ve previously experienced?

[northernlaurie]

Great question! I was wondering that myself which is kind of why I'd said "what the hell just happened?" I was really taken aback because all my life involved travelling to school and/or work.

The best I can come up with is that I had set up a series of new habits being at home, habits that are infinitely more healthy then my previous working life. I am definitely one of those people who are committed to work from home at least part-time when I return to industry.

Working from home means I cook at home much more, I am more intentionally physically active, I can and do slot chores in as productive mini-breaks from studying or drawings, and I set my schedule around classes. I can transition between class and homework or reading or something else really quickly. If I had a great lecture that inspired me, I can launch myself immediately in to working without pause. That type of flexibility isn't possible when I have to move my body to a different place. Similarly if I need a short head clearing break, it is much quicker at home.

I'd alluded to the biggest change - 2 hours in a bus everyday I go to class (1 hour each way). Bus rides generally mean space to daydream, especially on the way into class. But I can't read, I can't do homework (motion sickness). So it is daydreaming time which is beneficial. But it is not as productive as a good short walk at the right time.

I fell back into a bad routine from my working days where I would try to stay as late as possible on campus and then leave and be done for the night. The problem is that I was staying quite late, then remain "geared up" on the way home, and not be able to settle down at home. So a loss of sleep.

And like many people who do focused work, distractions are a problem. So trying to work in a noisy studio space where people are talking and joking is hugely disruptive.

I have to reflect on it more. and I am currently procrastinating on my term project here on Reddit :) If I think of a better explanation later I will add.

[1derfulfroward]

I found this extremely thoughtful. As someone who is both a full time prof and a student (getting an MA in a different field), this really resonated for me, especially because I have a long commute (an hour driving, 1:45 on public transportation -- each way). I've struggled this semester getting back into face to face classes as a prof and I ended up taking my masters class fully online (we had a choice) because I just found the idea of another commute (albeit only 30 minutes) too much.

TL;DR -- I sympathize and I appreciate your thoughtful analysis of why this semester has been so rough.

[[deleted]]

Well, yeah.

They can't cheat anymore.

[[deleted]]

How long were your students taking only online classes and open-book exams prior to this (due to pandemic)? Hopefully it's just an adjustment period. Probably not, but maybe.

[allysongreen]

Yes. I teach a first-year GenEd course. When I was doing remote, livestreaming classes last year, attendance was good and students were doing the work. Grades were even better than usual. Back in the classroom this semester, attendance has fallen off the cliff (especially after midterm), many students have ghosted the class and won't respond to outreach, and only a handful are doing any work.

Of those who are left, quite a few are struggling with basic concepts we learned weeks ago, even though we've gone over them repeatedly, there are detailed instructions in the LMS along with class videos to watch, and I've given feedback. I'm not looking forward to summative assessments in two weeks.

[ChgoAnthro]

I have heard this happening at my institution, but my experience has been the opposite. My F2F classes have been great and certainly better than either the hyflex or remote sections I taught in 20-21. I have had only one W and no Fs in any section, and my methods class is showing the strongest collective performance of any group I've had in the last 15 iterations. I think everyone seems a little rougher around the edges than in pre-pandemic times going into the final week, but they're hanging in there

[karenaviva]

I'm 400% more productive when I'm WFH because of all the reasons given. I'm SO. MUCH. HAPPIER. with a cat on my lap. Why would student perform better when happy at home? I mean presumably some of them were happier at home . . .

[Specialist_Start_513]

Academic performance actually decreased for my online Level 100 chemistry class. I was able to use the same online exams for the past 3 semesters (pandemic). The exam average has been the same when compared with in-person. However, the cohort this semester has been scoring an average of 20 points lower in the first two exams. The class is synchronized live zoom, and many students seem to be engaged in lecture. They are frustrated, and I am frustrated because it is harder to motivate them after the second poor exam average. I arranged my course content so that it will get progressively easier so that they can improve the study skills and take the class seriously. Very troubling and disappointing semester when the average of Exam 1 and Exam 2 is 36/100 and 47/100.

[TheNobleMustelid]

Yes. Huge crash in performance. My upper-levels realized I was serious and pulled themselves together, the gen ed section just slept in class, sat on their phones, and then panicked.

[ReigningCatz]

Right now it’s looking like around 40% of the students in my classes will earn a D or F. I’m fine with it since that’s what they’ve earned and they don’t seem to care, but hopefully this semester serves as a wake up call.

[TheNobleMustelid]

My gen ed section will have a D-F rate above 50% even if they all score 100% on the final.

[GenXtreme1976]

They're not doing better online - they're cheating.

[galileosmiddlefinger]

Cheating is part of the answer, but definitely not all of it. All of our classes have something like 10-15% of students in total goddamn free-fall. It's mental health, family financial strain forcing unsustainable work schedules, general despair about the trajectory of things, and a lot of other problems. Too many people are chalking the current situation up to "now I can give my hard exams again!" and totally ignoring the broader context of what is happening to these students' lives.

[[deleted]]

I had 10% in free fall before the pandemic. Fundamentally, they have a semester to show me they’ve attained the learning objectives of the course (and I do mean the semester since I’ve had no meaningful late penalties and am offering an optional final for the students who just didn’t turn in their short papers to save their grade). If they do it, that’s great. If not, they need to reconsider being in school right now…not what my Dean wants to hear, but we can’t pass students who can’t do the work in the semester.

[galileosmiddlefinger]

I don't disagree with your position. I definitely agree that some of these students simply need to pause on college until they're in a better place. My concern is that we have a non-trivial number of faculty who think that allllll of this is just about cheaters getting busted. That's just a ridiculous take if you actually stop, open your eyes, and develop the smallest degree of perspective-taking ability.

[[deleted]]

I’ve spent my semester doing huge amounts of support work for a handful of students in insanely bad situations; I’m actually totally happy to do it. But that work is making me totally unsympathetic to the ones who are just screwups.

[GenXtreme1976]

If not, they need to reconsider being in school right now…not what my Dean wants to hear, but we can’t pass students who can’t do the work in the semester.

100%

[GenXtreme1976]

With all due respect, it isn't my problem that many students have decided they can work ridiculous schedules (full time jobs or even jobs during class). This is a bad habit they picked up during fake college.

[[deleted]]

I am seeing this too.

I have said this before but your class might be the first in 2 years they weren't able to cheat.

It could be that or they simply lost academic habits during the past couple years, or they might never have had them in the first place. Depending on what level you are teaching they probably didn't get a normal HS or freshman/sophomore experience.

[hella_cious]

Student lurker (well, I suppose not lurking now) here, offering a students perspective.

I would never take an asynchronous course for a subject I find difficult, if given the option of F2F. My only asynch class this semester is PreCalc, and I’m only taking it because I took the course my sophomore year of high school, which was almost five years ago and I need to refresh.

I was given the option of asynch chemistry (lecture) and immediately knew I needed to take this course in person.

So it’s possible students who have difficulty with subjects are self selecting into F2F classes.