Pilot Magazine
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Table of Contents Your Teacher Is Watching You- 3 Zoom and Gloom- 4 Pandemic Partying- 5 One More Year- 6 In Room 414, Anything Goes- 7
Pilot Staff
Abigail Wagner Joshua Hezel Q Bess Audrey Branding Mallory Broom Kendall Conboy Jill Mayberry Amelia Means Elaine Ottens Adde Tudor
Editor-in-Chief Web Editor Staff Writer Staff Writer Staff Writer Staff Writer Staff Writer Staff Writer Staff Writer Staff Writer
Letter from the Editor
More stories online at lindberghlookup.com
Pilot Policy
Pilot is a monthly newsmagazine published by students enrolled in the Pilot Publications class at Lindbergh High School, 5000 Lindbergh Boulevard, St. Louis, Missouri, 63126. The publications office is located in Room 129. Opinions of Pilot writers are not reflective of the opinions of the staff as a whole, the Pilot, or the administration. The Pilot welcomes responses and letters to the editor. These may be submitted by email to lhspilot@ lindberghschools.ws or by signed letters brought to Room 129. The Pilot reserves the right to edit submissions as long as their original intent remains unaltered, and to refuse to print material for any reason the Editor in Chief and adviser deem appropriate. Contents More stories can be found online March at lindberghlookup.com.
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In this shorter March issue, the Pilot moves on some from covering news related to the pandemic. Two of our stories still focus on Lindbergh and COVID, with students offering opinions on the mental health impact of virtual school and whether it’s OK to hang out with friends and go to parties. Our other three deal with different stories from around campus, including new Chromebook tech, seniors exploring their post-graduation options, and the winter musical Anything Goes, which finished performances in late February. We hope that you enjoy the issue, and that you make it through the last week before spring break! Abigail Wagner Pilot Editor-in-Chief
The Cover Story This month’s cover is a graphic designed to display the major stories the Pilot chose to highlight in this issue. The topics of each of the 5 stories in this issue are written on the petals of the flower.
Your Teacher
Big Brother
Is Watching You
How new technology will change students’ Chromebook experiences Mallory Broom Staff Writer
Do teachers know their students’ every move on Zoom? The short answer would be no. Teachers don’t know about every action, but they’re likely aware of much more than most students realize. The truth is that teachers have gained many new tools and abilities for their online classrooms since the early weeks of online school last fall. The district has been focusing on student privacy and overall online safety, while also trying to balance teachers’ needs for an effective learning environment. Keith Loveless (Technology Support Specialist) has been involved with the district’s strategy to protect students during virtual classes. “If teachers have a class where there’s only one student and they’re on Zoom, they have to record the session for legal and safety reasons,” Loveless said. Loveless also stressed that since March, Lindbergh has cracked down on “Zoombombings” and non-Lindbergh accounts trying to disrupt student learning and resources like CoPilot. “You should always have to sign in with your school account to join a Zoom meeting,” Loveless said. Students likely have noticed an application called LanSchool on their shelf of available apps for schoolissued Chromebooks. “I didn’t know what it was. If you try to close it, it doesn’t go away, and when I clicked around some more it said it had been installed by the administrator, so then I just moved on,” Keira McMurry (10) said. LanSchool, an app developed by Lenovo, the company which manufactures Lindbergh’s Chromebooks,
monitors classroom learning on Zoom. LanSchool includes a variety of features, including monitoring battery status, limiting web access to approved websites, and disabling internet access altogether during assessments. Another feature, which Lindbergh intends to use, is called thumbnail monitoring. “[Through thumbnail monitoring], a teacher can see students’ screens in the classroom. If there are technical issues, it can allow the teacher to remote control to the student computer if needed. It’s not automatic, but the teacher could use it to troubleshoot. This is optional. It’s up to the teacher to decide,” Loveless said. Another part of LanSchool’s software is the push website feature, where teachers can instantly launch the same website on every classroom device to ensure students are always on task. Second semester expectations for students have increased, as teachers are encouraged to require students to turn their video on, find a quiet space, be ready to unmute to answer questions, and add a profile picture of themselves to their account. Julie Durham (Business Department) sees the new video requirements as a positive change. “The hardest part of teaching on Zoom is that so many students are scared to show their face. It’s really hard to talk to the top of someone’s head or a blank wall. I know there’s a lot of different reasons why they might not want to be on screen, but I just wish that students would jump on the screen more so we can be more involved,” Durham said.
News
March
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Zoom and Gloom How online school affected student mental health Audrey Branding Staff Writer
Online school during a pandemic can have Council for Online Education, people with high levels many advantages and disadvantages. One of those of self reported distress are 32% more likely to die disadvantages is mental health. from cancer. Similarly, depression has been associated with heart disease. This shows that mental health has Mental health is a very important part in life. When someone’s mental health is better they sleep long lasting and life threatening effects on a person’s easier, get better grades, and their overall well being is mental and physical health. better than someone with worse mental health. Many Lindbergh students have experienced According to the Tanner Clinic, mental health firsthand the impact of online school on mental has a direct impact on physical health. Bad mental health. health can cause sleep deprivation, addictions, “With online school, it has affected my mental bad grades, anxiety, depression, and a feeling of health in a bad way by causing unhealthy habits to uselessness. According to the CDC, bad mental health occur. This has also increased my stress and anxiety has caused during COVID-19 has caused an increase in levels with the amount of work I’m receiving and the addictions to alcohol, tobacco and other substances. lack of motivation I contain.” Maddie Heine (10) said. Many students have reported feeling like Lindbergh’s staff, including Linda Huynh their mental health has declined due to the unique (School Nurse) have noticed these effects as well. circumstances of the COVID pandemic, with 71% “The COVID pandemic has caused an increase of college students surveyed by in mental health illnesses among researchers at Texas A&M University “The COVID pandemic the general population at Lindbergh reporting increased levels of stress High School. There is an increase in has caused an increase in anxieties as scientists try to figure and anxiety since the pandemic mental health illnesses... out how to control the spread of began. Some experts believe this is partially due to the change in the virus and research effective at Lindbergh High classrooms and learning methods. treatments. It has impacted social School,” According to the CDC, COVID-19 interactions; social distancing and ~ Linda Huynh, School Nurse ~ has caused an increase in stress, not being able to see a smile behind anger, worsening mental health a mask have contributed to more conditions, and difficulty concentrating. depression,” Huynh said. “Students are not used to learning in isolation. On February 9th, Lindbergh decided to switch In classrooms today, teachers have students learning students that are not enrolled in ARC to Phase 1. This in groups, discussing lessons, and asking their peers means that all high school students now attend infor help,” Beth Doll, a professor of psychology person school Tuesday through Friday of each week. in education at the University of Nebraska, said Some students are hopeful that this new schedule will in an interview with the American Psychological improve their mental health and schoolwork. “In-person social interaction is a necessity for Association. people of all ages, especially teenagers. Unfortunately, “We’ll probably see some socialization delays because [students] have not had the chance to practice COVID-19 put a halt to that, but Phase 1 will these skills in a Zoom environment,” Doll said. hopefully be the start of reversing that, and becoming There will be other long-lasting effects of closer to the way school was before,” Lilly Naeger (10) isolation, too. According to a study done by the said. University of Buffalo, 75 percent of students have Mollie Koetting (9) agrees. reported feeling more anxious and stressed due to “School feels very optional because we are at home and that’s not because we aren’t good online learning. This decline in mental health may students.... I hope that [Phase 1] will help restore cause many issues for students in the News future. our mental health and bring new things our way,” According to the National Koetting said. March
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Pandemic Partying Students weigh in on safety of social gatherings Elaine Ottens Staff Writer
Lockdown. First initiated on March 19th, 2020 by the state of California and later affecting Missouri on April 6th, 2020, it has been strongly advised that people stay home to quarantine themselves from the outside world to prevent the spread of COVID-19. While many people choose to stay home to protect themselves and others, some people have decided that they would rather go out instead. Some teenagers even ignore guidelines and party anyways. It is known by the students of Lindbergh High School that there are many teens that have partied during the global pandemic. While some students maintain neutral attitudes towards the partiers, others think these people are selfish for risking others. “I think it induces the spread of the coronavirus and can be selfish because you don’t know how many people you are putting at risk and everyone’s health conditions are different. Hanging out in small groups is okay, but being around new people or large groups can be egotistical,” Cami Thomas (10) said. Neiha Cornell (11) agreed. “I obviously can’t control what others do. It’s selfish and I haven’t done it at all since the pandemic,” Cornell said. Cornell believes that partying puts other people in her family at risk, including two very young siblings. Thomas said when she does hang out with others, she keeps to a social
bubble that is the same every time. “I’ve hung out with a couple of my friends. If I do hang out with people outside of school or extracurriculars, it’s usually in a group of the same five people,” Thomas said. Some teenagers who disregard the people that party see them as people who are comfortable with their surroundings and the people they hang out with. “I do know some people who have gone to these gatherings but have worn masks and stayed their distance. I think that they know their limits and how comfortable they are with it,” Allison LeBaube (12) said. While Thomas, Cornell, and LeBaube haven’t attended any parties during the pandemic, they have admitted to going to gatherings of 10 or less people, all of whom are in their bubble. This is in accordance with the implementation of a 10 person limit on group gatherings by governors across the country, including Missouri governor Mike Parsons. Thomas, Cornell and LeBaube are among the countless people both locally and globally that can’t wait until they are free to go out around other people safely again. “I miss not having to wear a mask everywhere you go and not having to think about if your actions will cause you or someone else to get sick,” News Thomas said. March
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One More Year
Seniors plan to take gap year following graduation Q Bess
As the year nears its end, many seniors begin to feel the pinch to finalize their plans for afterwards. Growing up, it is common for students to feel the pressure to attend college and get a degree post graduation. While other options are available, students may not always be aware of them. This can cause students to go to college when they are not ready for it, and end up dropping out with a lot of debt. Many recent United States high school graduates choose paths other than college. In October of 2019, 33.8 percent of people who had graduated high school that year were not enrolled at a college or university. The practice of taking a gap year before college or other plans is usually fairly uncommon. However, COVID-19 led many members of the Class of 2020 to defer college for a year. At Harvard University, 20 percent of 2020 freshmen chose to accept the college’s offer of a gap year with guaranteed admission for the following fall. Gap years can be useful for those not quite ready to commit to one plan, or who are still debating between their options. Caleb Garmer (12) is one such student. ¨I want to get a good start on working towards a stable future since I didn’t really put in the work during school like I should have,¨ Garmer said. While he is not planning on going to college at all, he hopes to use his gap year to save money before moving on to other things. ¨I’m going to save money working full or part time and running an online reselling business,¨ Garmer said. Although, he added that he is still unsure about his future after the News gap year.
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March
Staff Writer
¨I don’t want to plan too far ahead because I change my mind so much,¨Garmer said. Garmer believes that Lindbergh puts most of its emphasis on preparing students for college education, and does not often portray options such as gap years or beginning a career after high school. ¨[Lindbergh] really emphasizes the road to college and acts like other paths don’t exist so much. We do have South Tech, so I don’t know if it’s Lindbergh’s job anyway,¨ Garmer said. A large part of Lindbergh’s meetings with students when talking about after graduation have to deal with college. However, some students feel it is important for other paths to be talked about just as much, so that they understand there are options other than obtaining an often-expensive college degree. Other Lindbergh students plan to use the gap year to create a solid plan for their future before pursuing their goals. ¨I have to get my plans together after this year, and I’m planning on joining the military after my gap year,¨ Elias Quinn (12) said. To help him do this, Quinn will live with his father in California during his gap year, to help get him prepared for the military and beyond.He believes that Lindbergh has done enough to help prepare him for the future, but that the school’s decisions during the COVID-19 pandemic made these preparations more difficult. ¨Really the only thing that would’ve helped is not going online so I could understand what was happening,¨ Eliot said.
In Room 414, Anything Goes Amid new restrictions, thespians stage annual musical Kendall Conboy Staff Writer
and design. The Thespians had a tough act to follow after last Shelby Shuster (12) has been a Thespian involved year’s production of Cabaret, which left members of in the theatre department since her freshman year, the audience in tears and in awe of the play’s powerful but as a senior she decided to take a role off stage as message of unity through diversity. This year, the cast, the student director of the musical, working alongside crew, and pit have all worked to put on a production like Mrs. Winingham. As the student director, she takes on no other. different responsibilities The production of of directing and blocking Anything Goes was difficult scenes, taking notes for multiple reasons, during rehearsals and including quarantine constructively critiquing the regulations, actors playing cast and crew. multiple roles, rehearsals “One of the coolest being limited to Zoom things about this year is meetings for the first half that our theme for Anything of the production process, Goes is a celebration along with stage blocking of theatre and a fun and choreography lighthearted approach to the adjustments being made show” Shuster said. to accommodate for social Arguably one of the distancing requirements. most impressive aspects But despite those of the musical is the obstacles, for the cast, pit orchestra. The pit is crew, and pit, the show composed of music students must go on. all across LHS who come Anything Goes is a together to perform a live lighthearted, upbeat show accompaniment for the that tells the heartfelt love actors on stage. story of lost businessman The show’s logo, designed by Mary Plass (12) has played the bass Billy Crocker and debutante Hope Shelby Shuster (12) in the pit since the performance of Harcourt. The duo are trapped Legally Blonde her sophomore year. on a cruise boat headed from New “We get our music around late November, around York to England with powerful showgirl Reno Sweeney the same time that the actors audition. We practice amid the humorous antics of gangster public enemy separately from the cast throughout December, then number one, Moonface Martin. start to rehearse with the cast in January,” Plass said. “I In a year like no other, the musical for many like being in the pit because the music is always fun and students has been an outlet where students can express it’s fun to get to collaborate with the cast.” themselves and pour themselves into their characters. How the audience viewed the show also changed The director of the show, Jessica Winingham (Drama this year. Social distancing regulations required the Department), selected Anything Goes as a relief from the world people have been living in for the past year: a year production to be live streamed, although there were a limited number of predetermined audience members of Covid-19 and uncertainty. allowed to watch from the auditorium. Those who viewed “...I just wanted a show that was silly and meaningless and fun... Cabaret last year was really intense the show online still had to purchase tickets for the livestream. for a reason, and I was not going to do that this year,” Winingham said. Because the show is jazzy and upbeat, students News have the flexibility to add to their characters and creativity when it comes to acting, costuming, lighting,
March
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