Since COVID-19 hit, universities quickly had to adapt to a more online approach when it came to learning. Student’s quickly identified with the likes of Zoom and Microsoft Teams for their lectures and seminars, despite it being a strange adjustment for all, online learning started showing some great benefits.
Universities rolled out free subscriptions to software like Adobe Creative Suite, which would usually cost around £49 a month and was only available on library computers. They also allowed students to take home laptops if they did not have access to their own. On top of that students found that they could work more at their own pace, with support from parents and carers and have a bit more control and independence over their work.
When blended learning was introduced because of the restrictions of COVID-19, students continued to take their lectures online and only attended practical classes and workshops. This meant that students didn’t have to get out of bed early in the morning for the sake of a 40 minute lecture, it was taken at home and people found the ability to watch it back more beneficial – especially for those who need to read/watch over something a few times for it to sink in, or couldn’t keep up with the pace of lecturers teaching.
It became much easier for lecturers to fit in 1-2-1 meetings with their students because they could be taken online, rather than meeting in person. Students really benefited from this when it came to dissertation meetings as they were more frequent and easier to book. Less confident students would have more of an input during online sessions because it’s easier to talk to a screen than in a room full of people.
The point is that there is no one way of learning, and despite practical courses taking a hit the most and there being disadvantages to online learning (as there is with everything), the more options people have the more likely they are to flourish, learn and explore. It’s the same with mental health…
Mental health support at university can be tough, the wellbeing services are overwhelmed with over 15,000 students needing support, usually students can only get 2 counselling sessions a year and are often referred to group sessions or the NHS, the NHS waiting times for therapy can also be months – so what can students do in the meantime to help with their mental health?
TriggerHub bibliotherapy harnesses the power to assist with mental health recovery, with a specially curated student series written by leading experts in their field: Dr. Dominique Thompson, Lauren Callaghan and Vivi Friedgut. They cover everything from anxiety and depression to finding your happy hormones, budgeting and staying organised. By adding these books to your university you are giving students instant access to a fantastic range of books that can help with their struggles whilst studying.
By reading a book you can recover in your own time, make notes and learn in a way you feel best, these books come in physical, ebook and audiobook form and can be read directly from your phone at any time! So help your students out with blended mental health recovery today!
You can find out more here: https://www.triggerhub.org/schools-and-universities/
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