Student Union
Why Students Go Dark in Zoom Classes
Peering out into the void of online learning, both teachers and students often face a virtual classroom of black squares and static photos of classmates.
Two Cornell University instructors have discovered that most students don’t like to appear on video during online classes because they are concerned about how they look.
Mark Sarvary and Frank Castelli studied why a majority of students — 90% of the 276 students they surveyed — kept their video cameras off during class. More than 41% of students said it was because they were concerned about their appearance.
Sarvary and Castelli are on the staff at Cornell’s Investigative Biology Teaching Laboratories, where Sarvary is the director of laboratories and Castelli is the co-instructor and active learning initiative postdoctoral researcher. They were designing their own online course when they wondered how video use would be embraced by their students.
Their study results — “Why students do not turn on their video cameras during online classes and an equitable and inclusive plan to encourage them to do so,” published in Ecology and Evolution in January 2021 — found that self-consciousness was key.
Among Black, Hispanic or Latino, and American Indian or Alaska Natives students — defined as underrepresented minorities (URMs) in the study — 38% said they “were concerned about people and their physical environment being seen behind them,” compared with 24% of non-URMs.
“Everyone else had theirs off and I felt awkward having mine on,” one student in the study stated simply.
“I am able to focus more in Zoom class/meetings if my camera and mic are turned off,” tweeted Rahul Raman, a Ph.D. candidate at Texas A&M University, on Twitter about camera use. “In the in-person class, we 'see' our instructor and vice versa, we don't 'stare'. Online thing is more like staring than seeing.”
From their survey results, they recommend that educators explicitly encourage camera use, but don't mandate it. Most times, encouragement worked with students, they said, noting that students also told them they were grateful it was not required.
“Another important strategy is to explain to the students why — so students have better buy in ... if they understand why you're asking for these things,” Castelli said.
Teachers can better pace a lesson when they can see students’ faces, he said. They can receive nonverbal feedback if students look bored or confused. Students benefit from seeing each other. And when instructors see faces, they do not feel like they are talking to the void and have higher satisfaction — in turn, making them better instructors, Castelli said.
“Research has shown that having an instructor who's doing a poor job is a leading reason to leave STEM. So, you want an instructor to do a good job,” he explained.
Using video camera has its downsides, too.
“This pandemic itself is causing stress on people. And that the sub-categories of people — which show even higher increase in stress — are those who are more likely to be our college students, young adults, and then also demographic groups that are more likely to be URMs in STEM,” he said.
“So, it's stressful out there and having to force someone to put on their camera when they're in an environment that's embarrassing or not comfortable would just contribute to that stress,” Castelli explained.
For those who do not use their cameras — either because they are unable or unwilling — the instructions have recommendations for participation, including speaking with the microphone, answering polls that instructors use and engaging in the chat function.
Sarvary also said mandating video use can backfire.
“That never works out well, especially not in large, diverse courses like ours, because the different students face different challenges,” he said. Challenges included being in an environment where others are sharing space, as well as difficulties unrelated to the pandemic.
Student privacy experts say that a camera use mandate could violate the Constitution, specifically the Fourth Amendment, which prohibits unreasonable government searches and seizures.
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Trump administration opens antisemitism inquiries at 5 colleges, including Columbia and Berkeley
The Trump administration is opening new investigations into allegations of antisemitism at five U.S. universities including Columbia and the University of California, Berkeley, the Education Department announced Monday.
It's part of President Donald Trump's promise to take a tougher stance against campus antisemitism and deal out harsher penalties than the Biden administration, which settled a flurry of cases with universities in its final weeks. It comes the same day the Justice Department announced a new task force to root out antisemitism on college campuses.
In an order signed last week, Trump called for aggressive action to fight anti-Jewish bias on campuses, including the deportation of foreign students who have participated in pro-Palestinian protests.
Along with Columbia and Berkeley, the department is now investigating the University of Minnesota, Northwestern University and Portland State University. The cases were opened using the department's power to launch its own civil rights reviews, unlike the majority of investigations, which stem from complaints.
Messages seeking comment were left with all five universities.
A statement from the Education Department criticized colleges for tolerating antisemitism after Hamas' Oct. 7, 2023, attack on Israel and a wave of pro-Palestinian protests that followed. It also criticized the Biden administration for negotiating "toothless" resolutions that failed to hold schools accountable.
"Today, the Department is putting universities, colleges, and K-12 schools on notice: this administration will not tolerate continued institutional indifference to the wellbeing of Jewish students on American campuses," said Craig Trainor, the agency's acting assistant secretary for civil rights.
The department didn't provide details about the inquiries or how it decided which schools are being targeted. Presidents of Columbia and Northwestern were among those called to testify on Capitol Hill last year as Republicans sought accountability for allegations of antisemitism. The hearings contributed to the resignation of multiple university presidents, including Columbia's Minouche Shafik.
An October report from House Republicans accused Columbia of failing to punish pro-Palestinian students who took over a campus building, and it called Northwestern's negotiations with student protesters a "stunning capitulation."
House Republicans applauded the new investigations. Representative Tim Walberg, chair of the Education and Workforce Committee, said he was "glad that we finally have an administration who is taking action to protect Jewish students."
Trump's order also calls for a full review of antisemitism complaints filed with the Education Department since Oct. 7, 2023, including pending and resolved cases from the Biden administration. It encourages the Justice Department to take action to enforce civil rights laws.
Last week's order drew backlash from civil rights groups who said it violated First Amendment rights that protect political speech.
The new task force announced Monday includes the Justice and Education departments along with Health and Human Services.
"The Department takes seriously our responsibility to eradicate this hatred wherever it is found," said Leo Terrell, assistant attorney general for civil rights. "The Task Force to Combat Anti-Semitism is the first step in giving life to President Trump's renewed commitment to ending anti-Semitism in our schools."
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STEM, business top subjects for international students
The Times of India breaks down the most popular subjects for international students to study in the U.S.
STEM and business lead the pack. Read the full story here. (January 2025)
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Safety and visa difficulties among misconceptions about US colleges
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British student talks about her culture shock in Ohio
A British student who did a year abroad at Bowling Green State University in Ohio talks about adjusting to life in America in a TikTok video, Newsweek magazine reports.
Among the biggest surprises? Portion sizes, jaywalking laws and dorm room beds.
Read the full story here. (December 2024)
