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Delving into the Digital Campus: Learning – and Growing – in Community

By Kethmi Egodage, Design Researcher

A photo of Kethmi, with a dark blue background. She's looking to the camera with long dark and red hair.

This blog post is the final post in the Delving into the Digital Campus series in collaboration with the Digital Community & Connectedness Project. It’s aimed at understanding how students find and make connections in digital spaces. Each post is a written reflection from our Design Researchers, sharing how the insights from their project has resonated with them in their own lived experiences. This post will discuss how the shift to online learning has impacted students, instructors, staff, and our design researcher’s own experiences at UofT.

Zoom School. That’s a buzzword students have been using to describe the transition to online learning. With a mix of synchronous and asynchronous classes and assignments, it’s no surprise that professors and students are overwhelmed and confused. Despite the best efforts made to continue providing a high standard of education, the question still remains: how do students feel about their community in the shift from in-person to online classes?

Delving into the Digital Campus: The Many Faces of Vulnerability

By Ayaan Hagar, Design Researcher & Project Team Lead

This blog post is part of Delving into the Digital Campus, a four-part series in collaboration with the Digital Community & Connectedness Project, aimed at understanding how students find and make connections in digital spaces. Each post is a written reflection from our Design Researchers, sharing how the insights from their project has resonated with them in their own lived experiences.

What does it mean to connect in an age where we’re constantly connected?

It’s a question that’s been on my mind since the start of the pandemic; with a parent working on the frontlines, I heard accounts of the virus’ impact that didn’t give me much hope for returning to campus anytime soon. I had always had a bit of hard time finding my place on campus until I switched my program last year and became a part of a tight-knit, cohort of students. It wasn’t until the pandemic hit that I realized how much of that connection was forged over months of FaceTime, group trips to Kensington Market, shared triumphs and troubles over coffee, and daily lunches in the student lounge. With my younger brother entering university in the fall, I wondered what his experience and so many other new students would look like.

Delving into the Digital Campus: Birds of A Feather, Do Flock Together

By Sanskriti Maheshwari, Design Researcher

Ever been told that opposites attract?

Through taking a course on Interpersonal Relationships, I uncovered something quite eye-opening. ‘Opposites attract’ is just a fantastical expression used to keep us invested in the romantic relationships and friendships that play out in front of our TV and movie screens. In reality, I have found that birds of a feather do in fact flock together. For example, in my own life I have observed that most of my closest friends have identical hobbies, personalities, political views, and so on. When meeting new individuals, any differences in interest or personalities can seem more pronounced than they really are. Possibly because a foundation built on a shared purpose hasn’t been established just yet. This is also something I learnt from my experience conducting the Stories from a Distance Sessions and The Digital Community & Connectedness Project.

Delving into the Digital Campus: Let’s Talk About it – the Pandemic Hasn’t Been Easy

By Mona Adibmoradi, Design Researcher This blog post is part of Delving into the Digital Campus, a four-part series in collaboration with the Digital Community & Connectedness Project, aimed at understanding how students find and make connections in digital spaces. Each post is…

Delving into the Digital Campus – Exploring the Importance of Digital Communities to UofT Students

By Ayaan Hagar – Project Team Lead, Kethmi Egodage – Community, Social Connection & Support for Students Team Member, and Betelehem Gulilat – Lead Editor & Writer

Our new reality has accelerated change in all areas of our lives, from work to socializing, we’re staying connected to our communities through the most hyper-connected platform called the internet. What elements of digital connections and communities help students feel like they’re connected with one another? With this question in mind, we’d like to introduce the Digital Community & Connectedness Project. Building on our previous work, this project is exploring how the student experience of finding and engaging in community continues to shift during this time, and what implications this has for those who build and facilitate connections within the online UofT community.

Stories Through Research Wrap-Up: Digital Community and Connectedness Project

In our third session of Stories Through Research, the Digital Community and Connectedness team shared their findings on building digital connection in uncertainty, and what students need in online communities. From our interviews with students during these uncertain times, we were able to uncover important student needs that can support everyone in digital communities – no matter the platform.

The Importance of Fostering Connectedness

Written by Carla Alexander, Content Writer Fostering connectedness with one’s peers is an important part of the student experience. That connectedness can take many forms — taking part in clubs, participating in sports, and building friendships with one’s fellow students. But what happens when life forces us indoors? Or life…

Search Results for: Delving into the Digital

What does it mean to connect in an age where we’re constantly connected?

Ever been told that opposites attract?