National Lockdown Pt. 3
British Prime Minister Boris Johnson announced that England would enter a national lockdown from 5 Jan 2021 because of a sharp increase in cases of the coronavirus (COVID-19), which is the third of its kind since the coronavirus pandemic began in the UK. What does this new lockdown mean? How has it affected students and their study? What will students plan to do during this lockdown? What is their advice and useful resources for students studying online abroad? Three of our Link to Leeds ambassadors, Tracy, Khánh, and Atiyah, share their answers to those questions in this blog.
Tracy, PhD student in Translations Studies
When I saw the news about the third national lockdown in the UK, I was actually staying in a hotel in my home country, China, for a 14-day quarantine. Honestly speaking, my first thought after seeing the news was that my decision to leave the UK before Christmas was wise. However, I will face specific problems now- one being the eight-hour time difference. Sometimes I need to attend an online meeting or a conference at or after midnight in China. Another problem is that I cannot borrow the books from the libraries and some of the books or journals I need may not have the electronic versions. From my personal experience, most of the resources can be found online. However, as what I said before, compared to that of the first two lockdowns, the impact of the third lockdown on me is going to be relatively small here in China.
During the previous two lockdowns and due to personal health conditions, I avoided going out as much as possible and stayed in my accommodation most of the time since March 2020, the start of the pandemic in the UK. Therefore, from March to December last year, I had been “stuck” in my small en-suite room and the only time I went out was to do some jogging in the park when the weather was good. The lack of socialisation and the fear of being infected had a negative influence on my mental wellbeing. For example, I got more irritated and depressed, which greatly impacted my learning efficiency. As a PhD student, I don't have as many classes as the undergraduate or master students but I needed to develop and finish my daily learning plan. In this case, learning efficiency was vital for me. However, every coin has two sides! Thanks to the two lockdowns, my cooking skills greatly improved!
Secondly, I saved money by not buying clothes and shoes during the two lockdown periods. Since I could not try them on online, I just did not buy since I didn’t want to go to the post office & return them. However, those two benefits cannot outweigh the great negative impact, after all the mental health and study efficiency are the most important issues. This is also the reason why I decided to come back to China before Christmas, though the air tickets were quite expensive and I had to finish quarantine in a hotel before being allowed to go back home.
I’m not sure when I will come back to Leeds for now, but I probably will come back to Leeds after the situation of the pandemic in the UK becomes more stable, especially considering my health conditions. The flexibility in my degree means that I have the permission to work from China from my supervisors.
As for my advice for students studying online abroad like me, the first one would be: making sure that you are connected to a stable wi-fi especially when you attend online classes or conferences and think of a plan B if necessary. This year I have been working as a teaching assistant in my school, quite a few students, including myself, have connection issues in the middle of class. Sometimes recordings will be available however, there are some cases where a class or conference cannot be recorded, which can be a problem and will impact your study.
Secondly, accept the fact that some days will be very efficient in learning while others you may find it is difficult to focus. I experience a change in nearly every single day. So for me, when I’m highly efficient in reading or writing, I will try to seize every minute to read or write as much as possible; while when I feel difficulty focusing, I will only finish the minimum daily plan and then do something else that is not relevant to study, such as cooking, working out, reading a novel and so on. It's important to self-reflect and this will help you be more efficient the next day. Also, it is helpful to go outdoors! Get some fresh air if weather, go for a walk or do some exercise. During the two previous lockdowns, this really helped me regulate my moods when I felt depressed and frustrated.
My last bit of advice is to keep in contact with your families, friends, classmates and supervisors/personal tutors regularly and to find opportunities to meet new people via the online activities organised by Schools, the University or the Leeds University Union. For example, you can meet other international students at online global events hosted by the Link to Leeds ambassadors every Monday, Wednesday and Saturday (picture below). The socials take place in the Global Community Microsoft TEAMs space and you can get more information here. I also recommend that you read more of our our blogs designed to cover a range of topics to help you.
Atiyah, BA Sociology and Social Policy
We’re in lockdown…again! This is my third lockdown in the UK (all for our own good, of course) and I can safely say and I’m sure several of you will agree that it is somewhat exhausting. I for one struggle with staying motivated, keeping up with all my university work, working out and all that jazz. However, having survived the first two lockdowns (for which I’m very grateful) I now think I have enough experience to handle this last one (fingers crossed) in a more positive and constructive manner.
The new lockdown much like the first means that you should not be leaving the house unless it’s for an essential reason, exercise or meeting someone with whom you have formed a support bubble. More detailed information on the do’s and don’ts of the lockdown can be found on the government website (which I strongly recommend keeping up to date with).
The difference with this lockdown is that it is in winter! My workout routine has been greatly affected by both the lockdown and the miserable weather, and I say this with a very heavy heart. With the gyms being closed, the only option I saw left was to work out on the rooftop of my building which is now impossible due to the fact that I’m afraid of slipping and breaking a bone. The snow and rain in Leeds means that the chance of doing an ‘outdoor’ workout is sometimes, impossible. Maybe you don't mind the cold but I don’t want to go running on the streets of Leeds which now resemble a huge ice rink. So done with my complaining...I’m going to tell you how I have decided to tackle this. Working out in my room is the only solution. You’re probably thinking ‘DUH’, I know that! But it’s not as easy and simple as it sounds. I have always struggled with working out in my room because
- the bed is the right there
- I convince myself that if I’m working out in my room I can do it at any time of the day.
It just does not work for me. But during these times, especially as we aren’t able to move and go out as we were once able to, it is important to release those endorphins and keep ourselves moving. I’ve found that motivating myself to workout at a time I usually would has greatly helped. In this way, I’m getting my day started as usual, showering, having a good breakfast and getting ready for a day…indoors. This helps get me out of the slump that staying in pj's all day can put you in. Don’t get me wrong, I love my Pj's and most especially staying in bed, but with this being my final year I find that is more important than ever to try and stay on top of work and give it my absolute best. To do this, I need to maintain a routine as best as possible.
As this lockdown is due to last for another month or so (don’t quote me on this), establishing a sustainable routine is key. It doesn’t mean that because we’re cooped in all day, all we should do is sit by our laptops and books. Eating well, going on a walks (make sure you’re dressed warm enough) and taking breaks every few hours is essential. I have also designed that as I now have an abundance of free time (or time away from my dissertation) I’m going to spend it by trying to complete my online sign language course, watching Netflix and trying to complete my dissertation whilst maintaining my sanity. To do this, I’m going to take full advantage of Microsoft Teams and remain in constant contact with my tutors and lecturers who I have actually found are more helpful than ever.
To all those of you who may be in your final year or you know what, even your first! Another useful tip that I have found to be quite helpful is setting up ‘dissertation nights’. Yes, I am aware that it sounds extremely lame but with all the work piling on, my flat mates and I have decided to put together a large selection of great snacks and meet up in the kitchen and work on our respective dissertations. This makes it less frustrating and a little more enjoyable, you can always reward yourself with a short break afterwards. Another thing that I have found that helps with improving my concentration is trying to get creative with the way in which I study. This could mean changing the way you write up your notes, or creating a mind map on the wall like I’ve chosen to do (nothing that can’t come off – I hope!) It’s an ambitious idea but makes working on my dissertation a lot more interesting.
Now, I’d like to wish the best of luck to those of you who are in your final year, but to everyone else too because lockdowns aren’t easy, not in the slightest, but as my papa likes to say, “focus on your studies!”. But in all seriousness, everyone focus on your studies (lol), and remember to stay positive, test negative (too cheesy?) and we will survive this!
Khánh, MSc Sustainability and Consultancy
This 3rd lockdown is the second I have experienced since arriving in Leeds. I have to admit that thanks to this lockdown, I have had the chance to learn to relish every single moment of my life being a student again. And just a few days ago, we just had a heavy snow fall in Leeds after 2 years and by no doubt, it has been the most amazing and beautiful experience for a girl like me who comes from Vietnam, from which we experience the hot weather almost everyday of a year.
Personally, I am actually enjoying these times of the lockdown. I am utilising it to take care of myself more, build stronger connections with my family, friends and focus on my studying. This lockdown also means that I have some opportunities to spend more time in my room and do the things I like. Most of my time within the past few weeks I've spent studying, I have got quite a lot of assignments and essays to do within the winter break, which is why thanks to the lockdown, I have less distractions and instead concentrated more effectively on my work. I have also learned how to balance between my studying and my relaxation time. When I finish my assignments, I will reward myself some free time to read my favourite books which I have never had the chance to read before. Besides, I make a list of movies that I want to watch and enjoy them on weekends' nights. My flatmates and I sometimes cook and eat together, we also organise movie nights and watch it together then we talk and we share about how we feel, and cheer each other up. During the snowfall, my flatmates and I went out and took some very nice and happy photos. Since I have more free time, I call and talk more often to my family and friends back home, they have been a huge source of support and love for me especially this time.
Regarding my studying, I am in my second semester of my masters degree. During this lockdown, I spend most of my time doing my assignments and essays, which is quite overwhelming sometimes. There are good and bad days, but somehow thanks to the lockdown I get less distracted and I concentrate more effectively on my work. On the other hand, I have my eyes fixed on the laptop screen for almost 10 to 12 hours per day so I get tired and worn out easily. For that reason, I am trying different methods to balance between getting my work done and not feeling so stressed. Sometimes when I get exhausted, I close my laptop, turn on some music and do some sing-along, karaoke by myself in my room (don't worry, I keep the volume to myself so I will not bother any of my friends), and believe me, it really does help. Sometimes, when I need some fresh air, I go out in the backyard of my building, take a walk to Hyde Park or do some quick essential shopping at Morrisons or Tesco. For the past few weeks, I have realized that I have learned to enjoy every single moment of my life, and it makes me feel so much better and happier in some ways. Thanks to that positivity I am having, I have finished and submitted most of my assignments!
Furthermore, this new lockdown also means that we will continue with online classes. I believe that it is something we will all need to commit to while protecting each other and keeping everyone around us safe and healthy. My experience of online learning in semester one was a mixed. I have noticed that I have missed the opportunity to experience offline classes but despite that, I have learnt to adapt to the new normal that is happening everywhere and to look at the positive side. Online learning also means that I will have a flexible schedule, I can save more time, manage my time more effectively and most importantly, I can review the lesson records whenever I want. For the semester one, my teachers, my classmates and I have been through some hard situations together, but in the end, we did have a great and fulfilling semester. I believe that we can still keep that spirit and we will have a better semester ahead.
So, I am planning to continue to focus my energy and spirit on my studying. In the next few months, I will be doing a project for my dissertation and I want to deliver the best I can and earn a good result. In the meantime, I will try to balance between studying, enjoying life and having fun. My advice for you is to start with having a study plan with clear goals so that you can concentrate more easily as well as feel a sense of encouragement, which will be helpful when you might feel a little bit blue. Secondly, reward yourself with some free time with books, movies, games, and cooking to relax and regain your energy for the next day. Please don’t forget to reach out to your loved ones to talk, chit-chat and share your feelings, I can guarantee that you will be able to get more support and a lot of wonderful advice. Last but not least, there are a wide range of online activities that you can participate in to make more friends and broaden your networks. My friends and colleagues above mentioned the Global activities with Link to Leeds and the Leeds University Union (LUU).
We at Link to Leeds, really do hope that some of our experiences and advice can help you and make you feel better in this time. I wish that you and me, will all have an amazing, fruitful and unforgettable semester within the next few weeks.