BEIJING: Dipping her head in a pail of water and flipping a badminton racket in the bedroom were among the hilarious tasks Tong Poh Yee did while undergoing online classes.The 21-year-old third-year Sports Education student of Beijing Sports University has been stuck in Malaysia for almost two years as a result of the Covid-19 pandemic.

       Admitted in September 2019, she has only spent four months in the classroom.

       “When I could not join my classmates in the pool, I showed my lecturer the underwater breathing technique by dipping my head in a bucket of water.

       “During another session, one of my classmates broke the chandelier at home while swinging a badminton racquet,” added the former state badminton player from Kuala Lumpur.

       Tong said she was delighted to find out there were plans for Malaysian students studying in Chinese universities to return to the campus.

       But she was left disappointed as priority would be given to final-year students and those who had to use laboratory facilities.

       “I hope the plan can include sports students because this is not a field which can be learnt from books or theory alone,” she said.

       Tong said she was sad that of the 17 international students in her class, 13, including seven Malaysians, had suspended their studies.

       “Online students are only taking theory lessons, so we are lagging behind our classmates,” she said.Peking University student Chong Xu Nian, 22, said he would go with the flow after finding out that he was not among the lucky ones who were able to enjoy campus life again.

       “I was hopeful at first, but two years have passed and I am still stuck in Malaysia,” said the final-year Philosophy, Politics and Economics student.

       Chong said he was dejected to see his friends who studied in the United Kingdom, Germany and the United States going back to school.

       “I waited and waited, but there have been no news,” he said, adding that he also missed a chance to do an internship in Malaysia last year as he thought he could return to China and do it there.

       Currently, students out of China are learning from videos and recordings while the lecturers are conducting physical classes due to unstable Internet connection.

       Limited views, sound issues and difficulty reading the whiteboard due to lighting were among the problems faced by students.

       For Chong, he would skip videos with bad quality and study on his own using textbooks.

       He also said online students were not allowed to do presentations during examinations and their scores were based entirely on the papers submitted.

       “This is unfair to us. Whenever I have questions, I am unable to ask on the spot. All these factors have affected my progress,” he added.

       Alicia Lim Yen Ling, 19, has no idea where her campus is or how it looks like because she has never stepped into it since becoming a student of Beijing Institute of Technology early last year.

       The second-year Information Management and Information System student, who hails from Kulim, Kedah, realises that school life is not just sitting in front of the computer.

       “It includes interacting with people, enjoying the fun of taking part in co-curricular activities, having meals at the canteen, hanging out with friends and many other things.

       “But all these remain a dream for me, at least for now, as I stay in my room alone and learn from the recordings,” she said.

       When she decided to further her studies in China, Lim did not expect the pandemic to last for so long.

       “I considered suspending my studies after every semester but dropped the idea after consulting my mother and other seniors.

       “I am also worried that the moment I submit my suspension application, China will suddenly allow international students to return,” she added.