6 minute read
Back to School ... Again
BACK TO SCHOOL.... AGAIN
After months of hybrid and remote learning, all students who chose in-person learning returned to BVN after Spring Break, but students and staff have varying opinions about how safe and successful they predict this return to be.
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By Charitha Lakkireddy
March 12, 2020 — it was the day before Spring Break and the last in-person learning day of the 2019-2020 school year. It was also the last time many students, including senior Leah Perila, saw some of their classmates in over a year.
Since the start of the 2020-2021 school year, BVN has relied on fully remote learning and hybrid learning. Under fully remote, all students were attending school virtually at home. Under hybrid, students were divided into two groups based on their last names, alternating, so that only one group is in person each day. Because of this, some students haven’t seen their classmates in the opposite group in person since March 2020.
Now, more than a year later, BVN is welcoming back all students to fully inperson learning. This return comes with a variety of emotions for students, from excitement to anxiety, and a mix of both for some, including Perila.
As fun as Perila expects the classroom reunions between students and teachers to be, she said she isn’t sure it offsets the fear settling in over the increased risk of contracting COVID-19. As a result of having classrooms at normal capacity and twice the number of students in the hallways, many social distancing protocols cannot be followed.
“It’s partly understandable why this decision was made at this time as we are moving into a new quarter and the number of cases and the positivity percentages for COVID-19 have been on the decline,” Perila said. “However, I’m definitely apprehensive about this decision personally.”
Perila maintains that hybrid is her preferred learning mode because it offered her the best of both worlds and she hopes to return to it.
“[Hybrid learning] allowed a balance between socialization and face-to-face time with the freedom that came with being home,” Perila said. “...Going fully in person causes a level of discomfort for me, but at the same time, total separation and being online [makes it] difficult to stay motivated. It’s hard seeing little to no one.”
The return to school was the day after students returned from Spring Break, which was another concern for Perila. She said that she’s disappointed by BV’s decision in general, but the date of the return is salt in the wound.
“A large percentage of students are coming back from vacationing and behaving out of the district’s safety control and that just makes it that much worse,” Perila said. “My nerves have heightened knowing many of my classmates are just returning from trips, and although many abide by safety guidelines and take actions to travel and enjoy their location safely, there is also a large amount of photos, videos and stories that make it evident many students and families sadly and scarily don’t.”
BVN administrator Kelli Kurle is not as worried about the date of the return, as she believes that the transition to this learning mode will never be a completely smooth one.
“There always will be something to make an adjustment for,” Kurle said. “Either families are taking this seriously and being safe or they aren’t — whether they are in town or out of town. Since we are all masked at school, the risk is low at school.”
With all students back in the building, many classes are expected to be full houses, with every seat being filled. This comes at the cost of social distancing, and the feeling of safety for Perila.
“I wouldn’t say that I feel safe returning to school fully in person as my classes already felt pretty full with only half of the alphabet there,” Perila said. “When I was discussing what seating arrangements would look like with my friends and teachers, it included needing to have desks super close together and the inability to socially distance in any sense.”
Despite efforts made to follow safety protocols, Perila doesn’t feel that they are being taken as seriously as they need to be.
“Realistically, I wasn’t expecting any social distancing to happen for full in-person, mostly because it didn’t really happen when we were still in hybrid,” Perila said. “I’ve seen students walking around with their masks beneath their noses at school and most of my classes were already close to being full even with just my half of the alphabet. Adding the other group into already full classrooms just increases the risk of exposure because we don’t have the space to socially distance, and it only gets more dangerous when students aren’t always wearing their masks correctly.”
Kurle said that she isn’t concerned about increased risk because the school’s first priority is safety.
“The guidelines for school recommendations have moved to 3 feet which is mostly doable,” Kurle said. “Between that, masks and air flow, we feel good about safety.”
Regardless of the safety measures taken, there’s no certainty about how this will influence the number of exposures and cases. Because of this, there are alternatives available if fully in-person learning cannot be continued.
“I can’t even begin to predict where the numbers will go with gating criteria,” Kurle said. “If they get bad we always have the option to go back to hybrid or remote. Those are never off the table.”
Although the possibility of social distancing to fit all students in the classroom. Spanish teacher Katherine Tankel emphasized the importance of wearing masks and taking other safety precautions, as well as the resources available to students during this adjustment period.
“If everyone does their part, we can help make the transition to full in-person safer,” Tankel said. “This means wearing masks properly at all times as well as respecting any protocols in classrooms, at lunch and at practices. If students are feeling uncomfortable, coming back full in-person, they can always find a trusted teacher, counselor or other adult to chat with and find some tools/resources to help related to COVID-19 fears and everything else being taken on.”
Perila’s concerns regarding the return are many and various, which she believes she shares with many teachers and students alike.
“Students have to go from learning in the comfort of their homes every other day to never having that comfort and relief again,” Perila said. “...There will also be an academic adjustment as students have gotten used to using the internet as a tool that teachers will begin to take away and move back into pencil and paper materials and tests. Mental health needs to be an even higher priority in the coming weeks as students will face a social adjustment, higher stress in academics, and heightened anxieties related to COVID-19 fears and everything else being taken on."
Tankel held the same views as Perila, in that classes had different expectations during the remote and hybrid learning stages, but she believes that the dust will settle soon enough.
“Returning to full in person will obviously have an adjustment period for students,” Tankel said. “Classes in different subject areas have worked differently during hybrid, so I think the pace of school will feel different and maybe a bit faster-moving than it has previously due to the fact that students will be in the building more frequently.”
She said that communication between students and teachers is key because this is a first-time experience for all of them.
“A successful transition will depend greatly upon communication between teachers and students,” Tankel said. “Classes that are full in-person will look different from subject to subject in terms of workload, but ultimately all of the teachers at North want students to feel successful — we want to hear from you and have a gauge on how you’re doing as you adjust back to full in-person classes.”
