As a result of the pandemic, educational institutions all over the world went online. Overnight, students transitioned from physical spaces where they could interact with other students to being seated in front of screens for hours at a time. Developed countries adapted the changes in a easier manner when compared to under developed nations that took a longer time to move to online platforms and that too was driven mostly by only those existing institutions that had digital learning platforms and capacities to operate them these nations.

There is still debate about the effectiveness of online learning. Experts have studied how remote learning affects children's development and social skills and how students retain information online. As a result, they conclude that online learning is most effective when three conditions are met:
• Computers and the internet are accessible to students on a consistent basis.
• Online course administration training is provided to teachers.
• Platforms offer personalized learning, tailored to each student's needs. As a result of these three conditions, schools, their faculty, and students in developing and under developed nations faced many challenges - the students being perhaps the most impacted by the shift to online education.

Due to the state of infrastructure in developing and under developed nations, access to the internet was, and continues to be, quite limited for underprivileged students. Furthermore, many children from less fortunate backgrounds lack access to desktops and laptops, which prevents them from taking courses.For children to grow academically, remote education has shown that they need much more support and self-development courses. Approximately half of households do not have access to proper nutritious food, according to the survey data. Children experience hunger pangs frequently and occasionally, according to more than 51% of respondents. Due to the current situation, almost 20% of households cannot afford to eat three full meals per day. It is challenging for 53% of people to access homemade food, while 21% find it difficult to access nutritious products such as full meals and pulses.

Learning, retention, and application of information is most effective when students receive personalized education paths and have sufficient resources at their disposal. A typical classroom would tend to students who require more attention or support. However, this was not the case during the pandemic.According to the data, 14% of respondents try to spread news that promotes positivity and provides information on caring, as well as testimonials of people who have recovered from virus attacks, while 30% filter the news and provide selective information to children. However, over 56% of respondents follow unofficial sources and are constantly reading news feeds, which can pose serious issues for their mental health and their behavior towards others especially the children.

In response to the challenge posed above, online tutoring platforms and digital learning apps were developed to complement the learning journey. While students disengaged due to a lack of social interaction (especially among the younger children), they did learn time management and responsibility skills. This can be said to be one of the positive impact of shift to online learning. However, a reduction in learning time, screen time being approximately 2 to 5 hours per day for students, depending on their age, along with the loss of social connections, impedes the child's overall development. There will be a number of changes when life returns to 'normal' post-crisis, including summer activities, self-development courses and more personalized learning modules to enrich students' learning experience.

A disruptive change like the lockdown due to deadly pandemic is also likely to result in some new opportunities that will change higher education worldwide, especially in a country like India, whose higher education system is scheduled to undergo a major reform. Here are some of the key opportunities:
1. Increasing use of blended learning
Face-to-face learning along with an online component will become a norm in universities and colleges. Bringing all teachers up to the required level will require them to become more tech-savvy and to undergo some training.It will be necessary to adopt new methods for delivering and assessing learning outcomes, which will open up opportunities for a major transformation in curriculum development.
2. New norm: learning management systems
There will be great opportunities for companies developing and improving learning management systems for universities and colleges.It has the potential to grow at a very fast pace, but will have to be priced appropriately for all institutions to be able to take advantage of it.
3. Improved learning materials
Universities and colleges have a great opportunity to improve the quality of the teaching and learning materials.Due to the fact that blended learning will be the new format of learning, there will be a push to design and deliver quality content, especially since learning management systems will allow academics to become more open and transparent.
4. Increase in collaboration
To a large extent, the teaching community has been insulated, especially in countries like India. Collaborative learning and teaching can take on new forms, even be monetized, in the future.It is possible for faculty members to teach online courses to students from competing institutions. There are also opportunities for collaboration between teachers/faculty across the country so that everyone benefits. Last but not least, the use of teleconferencing is expected to increase significantly. Many academic meetings, seminars, and conferences will move online and a new business model may emerge as a result of online conferencing. If seen from other lens, this can negatively impact travel. Future cannot be anticipated however one thing is certain and that is the change to be seen in the way higher education is conducted globally and in India.The higher education sector in India is not the only area undergoing reform, but the country will also undergo a general transformation in the near future.