A long uphill battle with the COVID-19 pandemic led to a surge in online classes at universities, and Marshall is no exception. 

Learning preferences vary among Marshall students, with some thriving in a flexible online setting and others finding success in traditional classrooms. 

Sophomore Sherman Lineberg spent a year as a fully online student and said the experience felt familiar after high school during COVID-19.

“I was used to it because of high school and COVID,” Lineberg said. “Though I will say I thrive better in in-person classes because I am forced to sit down, so it was easy to fall behind in my work when there weren’t constant due dates.”

Online professors allowed students a lot of freedom, Lineberg said, which can be a blessing and a challenge.

“I think some online teachers gave students the freedom to do their work whenever they wanted to, which can work for some people who are really on top of things,” he said. “I found that due dates helped me stay on track.”

Returning to in-person classes has been beneficial for him. 

“It’s nice after being isolated for so long because of COVID,” he said.

Freshman Josie Taylor hasn’t been on campus long, but is already taking online classes. She said she prefers in-person learning because it offers more connection with professors.

“I prefer in person because you actually get to interact with the professor,” Taylor said. 

Online curriculum is structured differently from in-person classes, with some online classes free of professor instruction.

“I personally learn better when I’m actually being taught it versus having to learn it myself,” she said. 

Nursing students can take online classes too.

Nursing student Mackenzie Pauley did and said recorded lectures made a big difference in how well she learned.

“One of my teachers did all of his lectures on video,” Pauley said. “We could go back and watch them, read over the notes and chapters that we were supposed to read for that class.”

The video lectures, she said, helped her focus on key material for exams.

“I felt like I learned better with the videos because it helped me focus on what he was going to be testing us on,” she said. “In other classes where we only had reading assignments, I felt like I didn’t learn as much.”

As Marshall continues to offer both online and in-person classes, students are finding their own rhythms in how they learn best.

Structure and classroom interaction make all the difference for some, while others thrive with the independence of online learning.

Holly Belmont can be contacted at [email protected].