DIFFICULTIES SURROUNDING ONLINE LECTURES

[Anchor Lead]

Some universities in Korea are providing online classes because of the coronavirus outbreak. But technical glitches such as server crashes and delayed access are causing a lot of inconvenience to students.

[Pkg]

It's the first day of the new semester, but the campus is deserted. Students took online classes, but they didn't go smoothly.

[Soundbite] (STUDENT AT KOOKMIN UNIVERSITY(VOICE MODIFIED)) : "(Were there any disruptions in the lectures?) Yes, sometimes. I just played it all over again, but the sounds keep being interrupted."

Students at other universities also experienced technological problems when taking online lectures. Myongji University has even introduced a five-day rotational system to prevent large crowds in classrooms. However, students could not easily access their classes. Hankuk University of Foreign Studies also experienced access issues when students flocked to classrooms at 9 a.m. In the afternoon, the university had to temporarily suspend some of its online classes.

[Soundbite] (STUDENT AT HANKUK UNIVERSITY OF FOREIGN STUDIES) : "The online server is working alright now, but the access to materials posted by professors is limited."

Both colleges and their students experienced a lot of confusion because Internet servers became overloaded.

[Soundbite] PARK MIN-KWON(STUDENT AT KOREA UNIVERSITY) : "My classmates said they could not access the lectures, either. Our community site is full of messages about access issues and the school's response."

Some students expressed concerns about their class attendance, as online lectures were not provided properly. Meanwhile, universities are currently restoring their servers to prevent further issues.