Class this week was very interesting. The material and information we discussed was very relatable because it was a lot about online learning and Zoom, which we have been doing for a year now. (My first online class last year was a year ago today, March 17th, 2020.) I really liked the parts of class where we talked about the positives and negatives of learning online as well as the part about Zoom fatigue. Some positives of online learning are that there is no commute, you can get more sleep, wear pajamas and do class in bed, lectures can be recorded easily so we can go back to them when needed, notes are also more easily accessed, and a new feature of Zoom is the subtitles and transcripts that are available, which can be very beneficial. There are also quite a few negatives with online learning. First, it can affect your body by making you tired and your eyes tired from looking a screen too much. It can also cause headaches and back pain. Some other problems with online learning are that when the internet is not working, you are not able to attend class. One other negative part is that it is hard to do homework after you already sat and stared at the computer all day.

When we talked about Zoom fatigue, I really related to it because I have experienced the symptoms of it, and therefore know I have Zoom fatigue and have had it for a while. I often get headaches after starring at my screen for so long. Some days I spend the whole day on my computer. On Tuesdays and Thursdays, I have three classes, I work over Zoom, and I do homework in between. Earlier this month my screen time one day was 14.5 hours on my laptop, which is crazy. We discussed how being on Zoom so much can be hard because you spend so much time staring at yourself or staring at other people. It can also be hard to learn over Zoom because you may get easily distracted by things in your house or by your phone. Personally, I have experienced all of this. We learned about something that you are supposed to do when on Zoom all day, and I think it would be very helpful. It is when, every 20 minutes, you should look away from your screen for 20 seconds, and you should look 20 meters away. I want to start trying this to see if it helps me during my online learning.

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