COVER

COVID-19 Going on 20

Students and teachers adapt to new ways of learning during COVID-19 By Zarmin Shah, Assitant Editor-in-Chief, Chandler Gartner, Reporter and Lauren Wall, Reporter

FOR THE FIRST time in over six months, 1,659 students woke up bright and early on Sept. 8, put on their first day of school outfits and grabbed a protein bar before heading to class. Greeted by PTA moms handing out individually wrapped donuts, MHS themed masks and hand sanitizer, students made sure to pull up their face masks and stop by the nearest hand sanitizer station before making their way to first period. The remaining 915 students snoozed their alarm three times left their pajama pants on while making breakfast and sat down at the kitchen table in front of their laptop for the third week in a row, logging in to first period at 7:45. The first day of classes looked stranger than ever before.

Classroom Chaos screens, however access to multiple devices and As Sept. 8 drew nearer, students were printed notes may provide them with unfair faced with the difficult choice of whether to testing advantages. return to campus and risk their safety or to “I’ve noticed that online kids are doing better stay online and miss out on social interaction. grade-wise,” senior Camille Smith said. “In During the month of October, online students some of my classes, the grade discrepancy is so attempted to tackle technical issues while in- large that the test averages went from B’s and person students struggled to maintain their C’s to A’s with the only difference being online health outside of quarantine. Within the first vs. in-person.” nine weeks of school, 28 students contracted For current juniors and seniors, one of the COVID-19, leaving teachers, parents and biggest issues has been the cancellation of students nervous about a possible spike in SAT and ACT testing days. To compensate coming months. for numerous missed tests, many universities “I think we’re all anxious,” Principal Lisa Weir have adopted a test-optional admissions cycle said. “It’s a weird time, but I feel like our Spring this year, allowing students to apply without Branch and Memorial family have really helped submitting any standardized test scores. Testeach other out.” optional schools employ a “holistic review “ With 36 percent of students opting for virtual learning, teachers have adopted more computerfriendly resources, system: one that judges a student’s potential based on several factors besides test scores, such as GPA, extracurricular It was scary ” often abandoning traditional pen and paper because I didn’t activities and volunteering projects. assignments. However, it’s not just teachers who know how my “It may affect the admissions process because are facing challenges with the predominately body would react it is impossible to compare a student with a test score online system of teaching; students are also acclimating to a new style of learning. Discrepancies to COVID-19. - Logan Agee, 12 ” to one without a test score if they have identical grades and extracurriculars,” senior Mary Kate Skrabanek said. are felt between both online and in-person students as teachers struggle to provide equal attention to both groups. “I feel overwhelmed, tired and sometimes frustrated, but I still enjoy what I do every day,” biology teacher Jo Ann Strait said. “I guess you could say I am like a first year teacher trying to learn a new subject — technology!” Testing, now online for a third of the student body, is conducted in bedrooms, dining rooms and home offices, often surrounded by the chaos that comes with being at home. “Testing online can be stressful at times with outside factors such as internet problems or background noise from your family,” senior Martina Fuentes said. “In-person people can just focus on their test in quiet classrooms.” Technical difficulties are another challenge online students face, as much of the schoolwork relies on programs like Zoom and ItsLearning, both of which require constant, uninterrupted internet access. With hundreds of students attempting to log into ItsLearning at the same time, the program is known to experience connectivity problems. “It’s hard to do classwork being an online student because Its Learning crashes a lot,” junior Grace Davis said. Cheating by online students can be reduced with lock-down browsers and GoGuardian, a software used to monitor students’ computer Worth the Risk? For senior Logan Agee, returning to school in September was not an option. After fighting cancer for nearly a year, she was beginning the recovery process when COVID-19 hit in late February. “I had to be really careful when going out in public,” Agee said. “It was scary because I didn’t know how my body would react if I did get COVID-19.” Logan, like many other students, has a comprised immune systems, leaving her vulnerable to COVID-19. According to the CDC, six in 10 U.S. adults have underlying health conditions, leaving them struggling with new fears and restrictions that the virus has caused. Even though many are not afflicted with these issues, the vast majority of students know or have close contact with someone who does, be it an elderly person or someone with underlying health conditions. “One of my immediate family members has high blood pressure, high cholesterol and asthma, so it was safer for me to stay home,” freshman Deveny Gilmore said. One of the biggest risks COVID-19 poses to this population, specifically those with lung and blood conditions, is the disease’s tendency to fill the lungs with fluid and cause blood clots. COVID-19 also includes the risk of leaving In-person and online students recite a digital script together in Ms. Sierra’s Spanish class.

Photo by Zarmin Shah.

previously healthy patients with lifelong health conditions. Some recovered patients are left vulnerable to future lung issues such as pneumonia, bronchitis and asthma. Lasting damage to the heart is possible, even in mild cases, and may increase the risk of heart failure or other heart problems. Since COVID-19 can lead to complications such as sepsis, an infection that spreads into the bloodstream causing organs to shut down, some patients might recover from the virus, but die from another illness.

Highs and Lows One of the most widespread issues associated with the COVID-19 pandemic is its impact on

mental health. As most of the state was shut was somewhat of a positive development. Some down for months, people of all ages were left in students used their time to focus on bettering isolation. According to a Centers for Disease themselves and their mental health by spending Control survey of 5400 Americans, 40 percent more time with family and exploring new said they have experienced mental health issues interests, such as baking, exercising or simply related to COVID-19. Depression and anxiety catching up on their Netflix queue. have increased as people experienced loneliness, “I grew to rather like isolation at times because financial strain or losing their homes due to lack it let me develop as a person,” junior Rita Reul of income. People who were living paycheck- said. “I’m happier than I was last year, and I am to-paycheck before the pandemic began now more grateful for the little things, since now I face added hardships such as unemployment, which can cause feelings of hopelessness. The U.S. Census Bureau know that life should not be taken for granted.” As thousands of Americans grapple with their new normal, I am more grateful ” reported that the number of clinically for the little things, students search for the sense of familiarity depressed or anxious people has dramatically since now I know that school provides. It provides some increased since midMarch, now affecting a that life should not structure in students’ daily routines, but the third of all Americans. High school students and young adults make up a substantial portion be taken for granted. ” differences between online and in-person learning are stark and problematic for many. of these numbers, although the pandemic - Rita Reul, 11 The fear still surrounding the left people of all ages virus, especially for feeling powerless by changing everyone’s daily immunocompromised students or students lives. Not only did new cases of mental illnesses with sick or elderly family members, keeps some appear, but thousands of Americans relapsed students home in an to protect themselves or or fell back down the dark hole of depression or their family, and the effects of quarantine on other mental problems. millions of Americans’ mental health are still “I have always had depression, but it definitely being felt. Nevertheless, the uncertain, and escalated the first few months of quarantine,” at times frightening, environment created by junior James Loftis said. COVID-19 has bonded people across the globe. For some, the time the quarantine provided

What is it like wearing a mask all day at school?

Victoria Stokes, 9

“In the beginning it was kind of annoying, but now I’ve gotten used to it.”

John Genung, 12

“I think masks are a great option to keep everyone healthy and keep school running.”

Drew Morris, 12

“I personally don’t like wearing masks. I think they’re irritating, but better than nothing.”

Students wear their masks as they stop to mingle in the courtyard between classes.

Photo by Megan Benz.