IMPACT OF VIRTUAL LEARNING ON MENTAL HEALTH OF STUDENTS

"Learning never stops." This phrase become truly a reality, when the world was halted by the onset of the
coronavirus, teachers across the globe were one with the frontline workers assuring that education doesn't stop
and that each student learns every day. The virtual model of learning thus became the norm of educational
institutions. For teaching and assessment, various online tools were used to ensure maximum efficiency of
learning and teaching. As technology-aided us in times of need, it brought with it some hardships, long hours
staring at the screen, minimum social interaction, anxiety, depression, and so on. Thus, it becomes necessary to
consider the various implication that technology and virtual learning imposes on students and teachers. The
main aim of this study was to focus upon the impact of virtual learning on the mental health of students. The
data was collected from Grade 9 students of the SSC board school in Mumbai. The descriptive survey method
was used for the present study. The findings of the study indicated that: 52.63% of boys and 47.37% of girls
sometimes felt confident while handling academics when online classes started, which indicates, students found
it difficult to adapt to virtual learning in the beginning but slowly have evolved to find it familiar and easy.
57.89% boys and 42.11% girls have Never felt low in the lockdown period which indicates that the mental
health of the students has not been affected. 34.2% of students sometimes felt the pressure of piling academic
tasks in the lockdown period.