For more than a year, Malaysians have lived a life in movement controlled environment. This is due to the COVID-19 pandemic prevention measures implemented by the government. The constraints in many activities have across various sectors such as education, employment, services and others. Therefore, most of activities in these sectors are carried out digitally and electronically.
For more than a year also, Malaysians have and still undergoing a large-scale of “digital and online training series” to perform activities which are prevented to be done physically in this movement order control. As young as kindergarten children also undergo the online learning process. Through this “large-scale training”, Malaysia actually accelerates the technology, communication and automation process of learning and progress even though not in the desired situation.
Without appropriate post-digitalised and online communication review, this rapid process may cause some people to be left behind due to challenges they faced. The challenges may varies from financial ability to provide digital and online facilities such as gadget and internet line, geographical challenges which is the limited internet coverage, effective communication in digital or online interaction and others.
In education for example, there are households which are not afford to provide online learning facilities for their children. A survey conducted by Ministry of Education (MOE) in 2020 found that out of 36.9 per cent of all pupils do not have any devices to undergo the learning process at home. If this online learning process continues without aggressive efforts to address the digital divide among these students, it can lead to education gaps and dropouts.
Digital and online communication also seen to speed up the automation process in employment sector. When more physical communication (for example, at the counter) can be avoided, it becomes time saving. It also lead to increase job efficiency and reduce human error. However, automation also presents its own challenges such as the reduction of employees and lack of human touch or interaction element such as empathy.
Human interaction is very important element in life. People are social beings and do not live alone by nature. In Islam, Allah SWT has created His creatures in pairs, “Exalted is He who created all pairs-from what the earth grows and from themselves and from that which they do not know” (Surah Yasin, 36: 36).
Allah SWT also created spouses among ourselves so that we may find comfort in them (Surah Ar-Rum, 30: 21). Moreover, human beings are created in diversity so that they may know one another (Surah Al-Hujurat, 49: 13). Such differences need to be courted through interaction in daily activities since at the end of the day, the most noble in the sight of Allah SWT is the most righteous person, not based on their skin’s colour.
Therefore by nature, people need physical interaction in various daily activities. However, the COVID-19 pandemic limits this nature to be done. Complete digitalisation and online interaction in some activities shall never replace this nature. At some point, it may create unpleasant or worse, hazard to those involved.
For example, a teacher’s physical teaching session is difficult to be challenged by online learning process. Children also more excited and eager to learn with friends at school rather than home.
Similarly, video calls to parents to replace physical present cannot match the warm hugs when returning to hometown. The loneliness felt by parents and children abroad cannot be replaced completely through online communication.
In pandemic situation which does not allow social interaction to be implemented as before, digitalisation and online interaction have become options to move forward in daily life. Therefore, it is important for us to inculcate human touch or human interaction in these virtual communications.
First, the instructions and guidelines given must use simple and polite language since reading the text is not the same as listening to a briefing from an individual. Differences in tone when reading by various parties can cause confusion or misunderstanding. It might also trigger tension between the parties concerned. This concern shall include the instructions or guidelines for employee whom works from home, school or colleague assignments, general procedural and others.
Second, to incorporate empathy in online communication. For example, encouraging two-ways interaction as opposed to immediate judgement or punishment. Each parties need to accept digital and online communication constraints today as a reality during this pandemic time and strive together to address them.
Third, to keep the boundaries of time. Working or online learning from home can increase tendency for individual to poorly manage the time boundaries. Therefore, it is important for individual and parents or guardians to make time rules at home so that everybody has quality time to do other activities. Employers also need to have respect the employees’ personal time even they are the one who grant work from home rule. Parents or guardians also must not force their children to study all the time without allowing them to do common children activities such as playing and chatting together.
Let us strive together to inculcate human touch in digital or online communication to maintain healthy interaction among us. Development and advancement of technology should not distance us from the true nature of humanity.