Here are some sample opinion and discussion based questions and answers or under Duolingo Speaking Topics of education and remote learning. You can get such questions in the Duolingo English Test speaking section or IELTS speaking.Let’s see how the questions are answered. Here are some general things to consider while answering the questions.
- You should answer all parts of the questions.
- Your answer should include some good vocabulary, sentence structure, and connecting phrases. Connectors such as moreover, basically, so that etc connect the sentences logically and create proper structure and flow of your answer.
Here is some general vocabulary on the topics of Online or remote learning.
Duolingo Speaking Topics Q/A on Remote Learning
I have created some sample answers on the Duolingo Speaking questions.The bold text highlights the connectors ,adverbs and important vocabulary used in the answersin the text. It is important to add as many connecting words or phrases as necessary to maintain the flow and coherence of your answer.
Q1.As a student, how do you like to study, online or in person? Give pros and cons of each mode of instruction.
Answer
If I talk about my preference, studying online seems very tempting. And I will tell you why in a bit. When I took admission in a course recently, I was told that my first semester will be online and I was overjoyed to hear that. Now, I would give you my reasons to prefer online learning instead of attending the school in person.
Basically, online classes save me a lot of travel time and I can use that time for self studying. Moreover, staying at home saves me from getting exposed to the very cold weather which we always have in winter. In addition, for online learning, I only need a computer and internet connection, nothing else.
That brings me to the second part of the discussion where I would talk about the pros and cons of each mode of instruction. So, I would say here that learning online is not the ultimate goal of education. Education is not just limited to textual knowledge, it also has a social component. Though online learning seem easier and more convenient, in person classes might serve diverse purposes.
One of it is to teach the students socializing and team work. Let’s not forget about sports, games and co curricular activities like literary clubs or student forums etc. They are certainly not possible with remote or online learning.
So in that case, going to the campus everyday to learn is more fruitful than staying at home and learning on the computer. We all know that an educational institution offers an environment which is mandatory for the social and mental growth of the students.
Remote learning has its own benefits in terms of convenience, but it has limited opportunities for social interactions. That is why, I would say that there should be a balance between the two modes of education. One cannot be undermined in favour of the other. Sometimes, remote education is inevitable, but it cannot always be the only useful option.
You can get a quick overview of the pros and cons of distant learning from the chart below:
Q2. Why has remote learning gained so much popularity in recent times? Discuss some potential benefits of education that are only associated with remote education?
Answer
I believe online education has many uses, and in some cases remote education is the only possibility. Although, it is there for a while, it has become very common after the recent pandemic which confined everyone to their houses. So, in those days, the trend of online learning grew stronger.
But, there is another reason why it became so popular or common, and that is the advancement in technology. By which I mean that more and more people have access to the Internet in all parts of the globe which makes remote learning more accessible than before. Another reason might be cost effectiveness. If we look at a traditional educational set up, there is a lot of expense involved in providing amenities to the students ranging from classroom furniture to educational equipment.
By providing remote learning, institutions have saved themselves a great amount of money and effort. Even from a student’s perspective, distant learning has saved travel time and money.
Coming to the second part of our topic, remote learning definitely has many potential benefits. The main benefit is the access to a wider audience. Not everyone has access to educational institutions in their areas. If it were not for the remote learning opportunities, half of the population of the world would have no access to the latest knowledge and information.
I am saying this because distant education has made it possible for a large number of population to learn what they want. It is, in fact, a dreamlike situation when you can learn things you want without having to travel long distances like in the past.
Another significant benefit of remote education is that it is not always the traditional educational institutions that impart knowledge and information. There are other free resources like YouTube and websites that are great sources of information.
Having said that, with distant education, you can also take courses that are offered in other countries or cities far from your own. Which means that distance is no longer an issue that can separate individuals and education.
To sum up, I would say that education is now far more accessible than it was in the past and it is only because of remote learning opportunities.
