Remote teaching and remote learning are the new realities for many of us. But they also pose a new set of challenges, especially for students. Many of you have never experienced such grave changes before, and we want to help you through this one step at a time.
This starts with looking at where the learning happens: your home. In order to make this transition easier, it is important that you work in the best possible way – part of this relies on your physical learning environment. When you’re used to spending most of your time in classrooms, the distractions or inadequate working spaces at home can seriously hinder learning.
It may not sound that important, but your home learning environment plays a crucial role in your academic progress. It can be tempting to attend your online classes from your bed, or complete your homework with the TV on, but these choices will have a negative impact on your learning.
So, what is the ideal home learning environment?
Research shows that your physical environment can significantly influence cognition, emotions, and behaviour. This can affect your decision-making and your relationships with others. Working surrounded by clutter for example can have negative effects such as increasing your stress levels and hurting your concentration. One study found that when people felt overwhelmed by the amount of stuff around them, they were more likely to procrastinate.
On the other hand, clutter may not always be a bad thing. Evidence suggests that having a messy desk can boost creativity levels. This is based on the idea that the mess helps us to look at things from a different perspective, and that a neat desk makes us more likely to follow the norm and play it safe.
However, this shouldn’t be confused with allowing distractions. A study by Michigan State University found that interruptions as small as one text message could lead to double the number of mistakes in work. It is crucial to your productivity that you eliminate anything that may distract you whilst you’re completing a task. It is harder to regain focus once you have been distracted and this can cause stress and poor work.
Let’s see if you pass the messy desk test – watch this video and try to identify all the potential distractions on the desk. Then, find similar distractions that may be in your working environment and try to eliminate them.
There are no hard rules you can follow when creating your learning environment, as everyone learns differently and everyone has a different surroundings at home. However, there are a few ways you can make a space that will help you. Use these tips to create a healthy study environment:
Finding the right learning environment for yourself may take some time. If you need a little bit of clutter to foster creativity, or find it easier to work in 30 minute intervals, then incorporate this into your home learning environment. Follow the tips above to ensure that you’re being as productive as you can be by eliminating distractions, improving concentration, and creating a comfortable area for you to learn in.