COVID-19-Induced Online Learning and the Associated Setback in High School STEM Education

The COVID-19 pandemic posed a serious disruption to most of the world, and one of the most impacted systems was global education. As schools transitioned from in-person classes to online meetings, many students began to lose motivation or develop internet habits that proved detrimental to their education in the sudden quarantine. Online learning caused a lack of face-to-face interaction, causing a multitude of academic and social issues. Inequities such as the discrepancies of internet access and varying degrees of familiarity with online learning also caused student setbacks. A lack of accountability with device-based online learning had also caused an increase in cheating incidences. In the present, post-pandemic world, education has returned primarily to an in-person classroom setting. However, the consequences of the period of online learning are becoming apparent as students progress and learn more advanced material. In particular, academic setbacks seem to be more apparent in STEM subjects as opposed to those of the humanities and arts. In this review paper, online learning and its overall effects, both past and present, are investigated.