This school year has presented unique challenges to McGill students around the world. With remote classes, fluctuations of public health measures, and ongoing travel restrictions, many students have had to adjust their academic plans. Now, students attend class from all over the world, often making it difficult for these individuals to keep up with their courses and stay connected to the McGill community. solitary solitary
As someone who is currently attending their second year of university from their childhood bedroom, far away from the McGill community, I can attest to the simultaneous joys and challenges of online learning. One major struggle I have faced is the loneliness of being isolated from McGill and from Montreal.
Studies have shown that attending classes remotely has had disastrous impacts on students’ mental health. Natalie Schwarz, U1 Kinesiology, spent the Winter semester studying from her home in San Antonio, Texas. In an interview with the //McGill Tribune//, she described feeling detached from her friends in Montreal.
“Especially with asynchronous lectures, I don’t talk to a lot of people in my classes,” Schwarz said. “I am not as close with [my friends] because they are so far away, so I definitely feel isolated.”
Hamza Chikhaoui, U2 Engineering, who stayed in his hometown of Casablanca, Morocco this semester, emphasized that studying alone was the hardest thing about being home.
“I personally think the hardest [part] of studying from home is not having peers to study with,” Chikhaoui said. “So you are kind of responsible for a lot more stuff with regard to course material.”
This feeling of loneliness is especially present among first-year students who haven’t had the chance to make real friendships with their peers. Having only visited McGill once last year, Ella Vanderkop-Girard, U0 Arts and Science, explained that making friends remotely has been difficult.
“I have started talking to a few people,” Vanderkop-Girard said. “I have a study group for my linguistics class, but I definitely think it has been a lot harder with everything online.”
Time zone differences have made it particularly difficult for some students to stay on top of lectures and assignments. The inability to attend class can hinder one’s learning experience, with work piling up quickly due to the lack of synchronous lectures. Chikhaoui has also found these new circumstances to be especially challenging during exam periods.