October 2021
New Person, In Person
ONLINE EXCLUSIVES
JAXI COHEN MARLENA ROHDE
How Lowellites are managing time
Joe Dominguez is our new
with the new bell schedule
principal
By Karis Kotschnig and Roman Fong
By Issac Fukumura-White
New year, new staff: Meet your new teachers, part 1
By Brooke Laur, Brandon Ng, and Issac Fukumura-White
THELOWELL.ORG
Cover illustration by Mella Bettag, Back cover photo by Jaxi Cohen
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TABLE OF CONTENTS
EDITORIAL Admin needs to be more open02 minded about lunch By Editorial Board
News Editors | Layla Wallerstein • Walker Whalen • Rae Wymer Opinion Editors | Karis Kotschnig • Sarah Liu Columns Editors | Issac Fukumura-White • Madeleine Johnston Sports Editor | Brandon Ng
COVER New person, in-person
Multimedia Editors | Jaxi Cohen • Marlena Rohde
04 By Walker Whalen and Roman Fong
Art Manager | Mella Bettag
OPINION Vaccine mandates are the key to a 10 post-pandemic world By Chloe Chon
GRAPHIC Back to school: A fall lookbook
12 By Jaxi Cohen, Marlena Rohde, and Kimi Norway
Editors-in-Chief | Sarah Liu • Rae Wymer
Reporters | Ava Alberts • Angela Chen • Darren Chin • Chloe Chon • Roman Fong • Ashley Glancy • Anton Kox • Brooke Laur • Kelcie Lee • Ruby Shaw • Isaac Olson Photographers | Libby Bowie • Jaxi Cohen • Lauren Kim • Abigail Lin • Kimi Norway • Marlena Rohde • Yeshi-Wangmu Sherpa • Ryson Sun Illustrators | Mella Bettag • Elise Muchowski • Nicole Wong • Denis Yabut • Raymond Yuan Business Managers | Yi Luo • Primo Pelczynski Web Managers | Audrey Lau • Joanne Zeng
FEATURE A flipped classroom prompts 16 flipped responses By Kelcie Lee and Ruby Shaw
COLUMN Making my way towards the 18 mirror: my struggle with body image By Ava Alberts
SPREAD DESIGN BY ISSAC FUKUMURA-WHITE
Social Media Managers | Sasha Fuetsch • Erin Guo • Gianna Ou • Madeleine Johnston Researcher | Saw Nwe Advisor | Eric Gustafson Accolades
2018 NSPA Print Pacemaker Finalist, 2014 NSPA Online Pacemaker, 2012 NSPA Print Pacemaker, 2011 NSPA All-American, 2011 NSPA Online Pacemaker, 2009 NSPA First Class Honors, 2007 NSPA Web Pacemaker, 2007 CSPA Gold Crown, 2007 NSPA All-American
The Lowell October 2020
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EDITORIAL
Admin needs to be more open-minded about lunch
I
00000000t’s no secret among Lowell students that one of the best 000000000parts of school is leaving it. But this year, it was 000000000announced in Principal Joe Dominguez’s back-to000000000school newsletter that a closed-campus lunch policy would be implemented for the 2021-2022 school year. Citing concerns about COVID-19 exposure, Dominguez hoped to minimize student interactions with people outside the Lowell community. In his video, presented to students during registry on the first day of school, Dominguez acknowledged that the policy wouldn’t be very popular. He was right. Many students took to social media to air their disdain for the decision, with a petition created in protest. Some students emailed Dominguez privately to state their grievances against the no off-campus rule. We believe that the closed-campus lunch policy should be rescinded because it is detrimental to the mental wellbeing of students, adds unnecessary abnormality to the school year, and, most importantly, doesn’t fulfill its intended purpose. It is ineffective in limiting exposure to COVID-19. Lowell’s administration has a commendable reason for the policy — mitigating COVID-19 exposure is essential to public health. With the several variants of the virus surging through the United States and schools reopening in full capacity, curbing the spread of the virus is paramount. Saving lives is indisputably important. But a closed-campus lunch policy just doesn’t effectively accomplish this. The main hotspot for off campus lunch was Stonestown Galleria, which is also connected to several popular bus stops among Lowell students, including the 28, 29, and the M train. It’s unpreventable that students will go through Stonestown on their way to and from school via the bus. This means they are interacting with the same demographic of people they would be around when grabbing lunch. This does heighten risk; it is additional contact with the outside community and interacting with people beyond the student body makes contact tracing more difficult. But limiting one period of time when that contact will occur will not eliminate the issue. It’s the same level of risk, just experienced at a different time of day. In fact, if the goal is to minimize COVID-19 exposure, a closed-campus policy has the opposite effect. 000000000000000000
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With approximately 2,700 students, around 900 Lowell students have one of the three lunch blocks. That leaves an abundance of unmasked students eating outside on campus, making social distancing during lunch difficult. The most obvious example of this is the courtyard: students take off their masks to eat their food, packed eight people to a table and clearly not six feet apart. What’s worse, the cafeteria is filled with students eating indoors with no vaccination requirement. By allowing students to leave the confines of campus, people will be more spread out and therefore less likely to infect each other with the virus. Then there is the issue of indoor dining. In this aspect, Stonestown’s indoor dining areas may be safer than Lowell’s cafeteria. Due to a new city wide policy, all people must show proof of vaccination in order to eat inside at Stonestown. While the restaurant-goers may not be made up of 100 percent students, students would have the peace of mind knowing that everyone eating there is 100 percent vaccinated. Closed-campus lunch is also an unnecessary addition to the already abundant list of changes to the school year. Students are juggling a masked environment and a longer school day. Dances have been restructured to adhere to COVID-19 protocols, and Lowell’s beloved Arena system was scrapped last year due to the schedule uncertainty created by COVID-19. These are the new realities that we are learning to adapt to, some of which are necessary and well justified. But that does not apply to a closedcampus policy. The ineffectiveness of this rule and the detriment it has on students creates more harm than good. Going off campus for lunch provides many students a mental escape from the daily pressures of life as Lowell students. Academic competition and an intense workloads result in a lot of stress. By going off campus and enjoying a meal, students are able to forget about their studies, recharging mentally and physically for the remainder of the day. Without an open-campus policy, many students are finding themselves in a high-pressure atmosphere for over eight hours straight. Open-campus lunch is safe and provides students with vital downtime. The freedom of an open campus should be reinstated, allowing students to enjoy a bit of normalcy for the remainder of the challenging year ahead of us.
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CARTOON
SPREAD DESIGN BY WALKER WHALEN
FROM THE EDITORS
DENIS YABUT
Dear readers of The Lowell, Hello, and welcome back. We’re excited to be producing print news magazines again; this marks our first print issue since January 2020. This semester is also the first time our entire staff has physically been together in 18 months, and returning to campus has reunited us with the beloved Journ room. Despite the excitement of these milestones, we must acknowledge the difficulties of our return to in-person learning. This issue of The Lowell explores how our school community is readjusting to being on campus again. Our cover story focuses on the long-term social effects of quarantine and the identity shock of coming back to school. We also look to the future of in-person learning with an opinion piece in support of Gov. Newsom’s vaccine mandate. Looking forward, this year provides a fresh start for The Lowell and our school community. We are excited to be here with you and continue the important work of exploring campus issues. Editors-in-Chief, Sarah Liu and Rae Wymer The Lowell is published by the journalism classes of Lowell High School. All contents copyright Lowell High School journalism classes. All rights reserved. The Lowell strives to inform the public and to use its opinion sections as open forums for debate. All unsigned editorials are opinions of the staff. The Lowell welcomes comments on school-related issues from students, faculty and community members. Send letters to the editors to thelowellnews@gmail.com. Names will be withheld upon request. We reserve the right to edit letters before publication. The Lowell is a student-run publication distributed to thousands of readers including students, parents, teachers and alumni. All advertisement profits fund our newsmagazine issues. To advertise online or in print, email thelowellmanagement@gmail.com. Contact us: Lowell High School 1101 Eucalyptus Drive San Francisco, CA 94132 415-759-2730 or at thelowellnews@gmail.com
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New person, in-person
How Lowell students are adjusting to in-person learning By Roman Fong and Walker Whalen
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The Lowell October 2021
PHOTO AND SPREAD BY JAXI COHEN
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The Lowell October 2021
COVER
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999999999enior Donna Lee stands on the sidewalk outside Lowell, 999999999admiring the campus. It’s the first day of her senior year 999999999and her first day on school grounds since she was a sophomore. Exhilaration builds as Lee walks toward the front entrance, but an overwhelming wave of anxiety crashes over her when she sees the swarm of students pouring inside. Although Lee has been eager to return to a normal school setting, she’s nervous about reconnecting with old classmates. Lee feels like a new person compared to who she was before quarantine and worries about how her classmates will view her. Thoughts like "What will everyone think of me?" and "I hope no one remembers the embarrassing things I’ve done," fill her head as she walks in the doors. Students have returned to on-campus learning for the first time since the beginning of lockdown in March 2020 and are reacclimating to in-person social interaction. After spending a year and a half isolated online, many students are finding that they need time to adjust, some more than others. For some students, the return to normalcy has been hindered by new social dynamics and changes in identities. Distance learning caused some students to undergo personal changes. According to Dr. Lisa Kiang, a professor of Psychology at Wake Forest University, quarantine gave students an opportunity to become more in tune with themselves. Despite being socially restrictive, Kiang believes distance learning could have positive 000000
DONNA LEE
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introspective effects on students. "I can see how online virtual spaces can lead to positive personal exploration," she said. “I think that there is no better time than during isolation to be more self-reflective and try to use the extra time to explore what they like.” With more time to reflect on themselves, quarantine allowed students a space to strengthen different aspects of themselves and reflect on who they were as people. Lee matured during quarantine, noting a drastic difference between who she is now and who she was entering quarantine. With increased free time, Lee strengthened her social skills by making new friends online and keeping up with her existing ones. “My extroverted personality became stronger, and I became more socially confident,” Lee said. “Since we had more time, I was able to talk to [my friends] more, which I wouldn’t have been able to do if it wasn’t for quarantine.”
“There is no better time than during isolation to be more selfreflective and try to use the extra time to explore what they like.”
PHOTO BY JAXI COHEN ILLUSTRATIONS MELLA BETTAG
COVER
JAE MUHAMMAD
PHOTO BY JAXI COHEN, ILLUSTRATION BY MELLA BETTAG SPREAD DESIGN BY BRANDON NG AND KARIS KOTSCHNIG
As access to in-person interaction was limited, students turned to the internet to engage with others, which opened them to new identities. For freshman Jae Muhammad, interacting with people online exposed him to a broader range of perspectives, which helped him empathize with others. “I was introduced to a lot of different types of points of views, by just being [online] all the time,” He became better at standing up for himself, yet also grew humble, learning to admit when he was wrong. Away from the social pressures of being in person, Muhammad was able to evaluate his belief system and become more reflective about himself. While distance learning opened a window for students to reflect on themselves, it also had negative impacts on mental health. According to Dr. Caitlin Costello, medical director of the child and adolescent ambulatory services at UCSF Langley Porter Psychiatric Hospital, social interaction during the teenage years is one of the most important factors of personal growth. Positive social interaction during the teenage years can reduce the chances of developing depression and anxiety, but without it, those feelings can increase. “We find that things like depression and anxiety tend to be exacerbated with teens not getting a lot of social interaction,” Costello said.
Isolation during distance learning didn’t positively affect everyone. When the pandemic began, sophomore Sebastian Sanner noticed a decline in his mental health, finding himself more irritable and angry as time went on. Restricted from social interactions, Sanner’s feelings of loneliness grew exponentially, and he was eventually diagnosed with depression and anxiety. “It was a shocker to me,” he said. “I knew something was wrong, but I didn’t expect it to be clearly labeled as a condition.” Struggling with what he felt, Sanner began keeping his thoughts to himself. He grew apprehensive about people’s reactions when he did speak. “I had more time to reflect on myself, but it caused me to second-guess myself, being more aware of how people might react to what I say,” he said. Now, some students are struggling to transition from their distance learning experiences to an in-person reality. Muhammad became more empathetic while in isolation, a trait he wants to stay true to during the transition from distance learning. Simultaneously he is trying to readapt to the once-familiar routine of in-person learning. "It's been hard because I haven't been able to practice being who I've been trying to be in quarantine with other other
“I was introduced to a lot of different types of points of views, by just being [online] all the time.”
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CATEGORY COVER JAE MUHAMMAD people around me,” he said. “Sometimes I’m scared of reverting back to my old self.” Similarly, Lee worried about returning to school with her newfound extrovertism. Because she hasn’t seen some friends in such a long time, she wants people to know that she has matured since sophomore year without blatantly stating it. “Before quarantine, my social skills weren’t the best, and I wasn’t the best at interacting with people,” Lee said. "I was scared that people would remember that Donna, instead of the Donna that I became after quarantine." “I haven’t been able to practice being who I’ve been trying to be in quarantine with other people around me. Sometimes I’m scared of reverting back to my old self.”
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Lee’s personal changes during quarantine have affected how she interacts with both acquaintances and closer friends. With their personalities becoming stronger during quarantine, Lee’s friend group began to branch out and expand their social circle. “People developed more strong personalities, and that changed how they interact with people they are close with,” she said. “It’s not that I got tired of my close friends during quarantine, it’s just we grew individually.” After the isolation of quarantine and distance learning, in-person interaction has felt foreign to some students. Muhammad feels like he is out of practice in terms of socializing with people after distance learning. According to Costello, this is normal. “People were doing distance learning for a significant period of time, and naturally, that could cause people to be out of practice with their social skills,” she said. “Having to experience additional social interactions can be a difficult adjustment for some people.” Lee has also noticed that social interaction with acquaintances is awkward, especially after not interacting with people for so long. "Catching up has been slower, since there is a lot of easing back into a familiar rhythm of talking to those people,” she said. For Sanner, it has been harder to make connections because the methods of interaction have changed, PHOTO BY JAXI COHEN, worrying that they may become permanent. “It’s hard for me to ILLUSTRATION BY MELLA BETTAG visualize social interaction fully bouncing back after 0bbbbbbbggg000
PHOTO BY JAXI COHEN ILLUSTRATIONS BY MELLA BETTAG SPREAD DESIGN BY BRANDON NG AND KARIS KOTSCHNIG
CATEGORY COVER
JAE MUHAMMAD “It’s been such a radical shift and I think that we can do
a lot better understanding that we aren’t alone in this.”
COVID,” he said. Sanner has struggled with rekindling old friendships since school returned in person. He noticed that the separation caused by quarantine and his struggles with mental health eroded his friendships. Now, after being face to face again, those friendships haven’t fully bounced back. “It makes it that much harder because I thought we were gonna go through high school together as a close group,” Sanner said. According to Costello, not socializing with friends for an extended period of time can cause rifts. Students may have drifted apart from some friendships or peer acquaintanceships during distance learning,” she said. “Now they are having to reestablish those relationships which can be extremely difficult.” While the transition back to an in-person setting may not be easy, students and experts alike agree that it’ll take a collective effort to progress towards comfortable interactions Sanner thinks students oooooo0000
SEBASTIAN SANNER
need to be assertive in initiating social interaction in their communities. “The thing that picks people back up is that we have others around us,” he said. “The best thing you can do is find someone you can talk to and be comfortable around.” According to Costello, recognizing that this is a major transition and that interaction won’t be easy at first will help reduce possible social anxiety. “It may be too much to expect people to have care-free conversations with everyone they know,” Costello said. “It’s going to take extra effort at first. Interaction isn’t going to come as naturally as it did before distance learning.” Halfway through the first semester of school, some students are still easing back into their old routines. Sanner believes they should be hopeful and know that everyone is going through the same process. “It’s been such a radical shift and I think that we can do a lot better understanding that we aren’t alone in this,” he said. PHOTO BY JAXI COHEN, ILLUSTRATION BY MELLA BETTAG
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PHOTO BY JAXI COHEN, ILLUSTRATION MELLA BETTAG PHOTO BY BY JAXI COHEN SPREAD DESIGN BY BRANDON NG ANDBY KARIS KOTSCHNIG ILLUSTRATIONS MELLA BETTAG
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OPINION Vaccine mandates are the key to a post-pandemic world
By Chloe Chon
ELISE MUCHOWSKI
O
00000000n October 1st, 2021, California Gov. Gavin Newsom 00000000announced the implementation of a state-wide COVID0000000019 vaccination mandate within schools, the first of its kind in the country. It would be implemented as soon as vaccines for children aged 12 and older were eligible for COVID-19 vaccines, which is expected to happen in the coming weeks. Though overdue, this is the right move towards keeping students and their families safe. However, this mandate is likely to face significant legal challenges and backlash. Although many question the constitutionality of vaccine requirements, extensive historical precedent has proven time and time again that government-issued vaccine mandates are not only legal, but a necessary part of fighting infectious diseases. Throughout the pandemic, it’s been made clear that district-wide vaccine mandates are the right choice: mandates had already been implemented in some California school districts prior to Gov. 0000000 00
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Newsom’s announcements. In August of 2021, L.A. Unified School District, the second-largest school district in the nation issued one of the first district-wide COVID-19 vaccine mandates in America. A small but growing number of school districts rightfully followed suit, including Oakland Unified and San Diego Unified School District. These districts set a bold precedent for how vaccine mandates would play out in larger school districts, and California’s mandate is a necessary step towards ensuring the safety of students. Additionally, vaccine mandates have historically been a vital part of protecting communities’ public health. The first vaccine mandate in the United States can be traced all the way back to 1809, with Massachusetts’ smallpox vaccination law. Currently, all SFUSD students must be vaccinated against the viruses tetanus, diphtheria, pertussis (Tdap), and chickenpox before entering the 7th grade. Incompliant students are not allowed to attend school, barring any proven medical exemptions. There is ample precedent 0000
ILLUSTRATIONS BY RAYMOND YUAN
SPREAD DESIGN BY RAE WYMER
Governments executing their responsibility for protecting public health by enacting vaccine mandates is as American as it gets. for vaccine mandates, and any challenge to the logistics of vaccine mandates goes against our country’s extensive history of requiring vaccinations. Parents of students across the nation have already disrupted school board meetings and accosted officials in an attempt to reverse school-wide vaccine mandates, and Gov. Newsom’s COVID-19 vaccine mandate is likely to face fierce backlash. One of the most widely used arguments by these protestors is that mandates intrude on certain “constitutional rights'' promised to us. Republican Senator Ted Cruz, a vocal opposer of vaccine mandates, labeled federal vaccine mandates as “authoritarian,” arguing that they infringe on Americans’ liberty. However, exercising our constitutional right to liberty at the cost of societal wellbeing is unconstitutional in and of itself; it potentially robs other people of their right to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. Governments executing their responsibility for protecting public health by enacting vaccine mandates is as American as it gets. The Supreme Court echoed this sentiment in the 1905 case Jacobson vs. Massachusetts, which upheld the legality of state-issued mandates against a man challenging the validity of smallpox vaccines. Parallel to the situation we find ourselves in, citizens had an obligation to minimize the threat of smallpox by any means necessary. COVID19 vaccines serve no purpose other than to protect citizens. There is no constitutional right to refuse them during a pandemic that threatens the lives and livelihoods of millions. In fact, the same Constitution being invoked by anti-vaxxers actually makes a case for vaccine mandates. The Constitution promises the fundamental “rights to life” for all Americans, which can, and should, be protected through preventative measures such as the requirement of mass vaccinations. Staff, faculty, and students at Lowell and other high schools don’t solely exist within the confines of our school grounds; they return home, often to spouses, parents, and siblings. Younger children are especially vulnerable, as 000000000000000000000000000000000vaccines have yet to be 000000000000000000000000000000000approved for those under 00000000000000000000000000000000012 years old. Minimizing 000000000000000000000000000000000the number of 000000000000000000000000000000000unvaccinated individuals 000000000000000000000000000000000within our school 000000000000000000000000000000000environment is the easiest 000000000000000000000000000000000method of limiting 0000000000000
exposure to the virus. This simple policy change will reduce the risk of further spread and protect those who are only a bus trip or car ride away from exposure.
There is no constitutional right to refuse vaccines during a pandemic that threatens the lives and livelihoods of millions.
Admittedly, some students may also be allergic to certain components in vaccines, although these cases are extremely rare, and treatable. To accommodate this, schools should follow the example of universities with mandates in place, such as Harvard University, which allows unvaccinated students on campus on the condition that they submit semiweekly negative COVID-19 tests and selfscreen more rigorously than vaccinated individuals. Although not as effective and practical as getting vaccinated, alternative solutions must be offered by the state for those who face medical barriers to receiving COVID-19 vaccines. Mandating vaccines will help ensure a safe, healthy school year for all students and staff at secondary school campuses. Currently, the future of in-person schooling remains tentative at best, and reported positive cases within campuses send waves of uncertainty through families. California setting the standard for requiring inoculation within schools will ensure that our return to in-person learning is here to stay. It’s time for us 0to recognize that vaccine mandates are a crucial, necessary step towards normalcy.
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MULTIMEDIA CATEGORY
Back Back to to school: school: A A fall fall lookbook lookbook By Jaxi Cohen, Kimi Norway, and Marlena Rohde
ARCHER CAREW "I think a person’s
M
any students explored channels of self expression during quarantine. With time to reflect and become more in tune with themselves, some Lowellites developed distinct senses of style in isolation. Amber Lau, Archie Carew, Sophia Efimova, and Kayla Yee are just few of many Lowell students who use clothing to express who they are.
personality or how they see themselves is reflected in what they wear." PHOTO BY KIMI NORWAY SPREAD DESIGN BY JAXI COHEN
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PHOTOS BY MARLENA ROHDE
KAYLA KAYLA YEE YEE
"I'd "I'd describe describe my my style style as as an an expression expression of of my my
"Growing up, I only thought of blazers and suits as this intimidating, professional outfit
queer queer identity: identity: sophisticated, sophisticated,
that men wore for business meetings."
powerful, powerful, and and fluid." fluid."
SPREAD DESIGN BY MARLENA ROHDE
"bend "bend and and blur blur the the lines lines of of femininity, femininity, masculinity, masculinity, and and androgyny" androgyny"
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MULTIMEDIA PHOTOS BY MARLENA ROHDE
SOPHIA SOPHIA EFIMOVA EFIMOVA
"It "It honestly honestly brings brings me me peace peace of of mind mind to to
together together good, good, nicenicelooking looking outfits outfits where where all all of of the the different different clothing clothing items items harmonize." harmonize."
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SPREAD DESIGN BY MARLENA ROHDE
be be able able to to put put
U AU L LA
"
"
eling like the ls fe que l a h R R en e E E th of B B n th M M w e o A A d w o lk rl a d w . I
"Clothes are so fun. Just wear stupid stuff."
"Wear your underwear outside of your clothes for once." "That could be fun."
PHOTOS BY JAXI COHEN
SPREAD DESIGN BY JAXI COHEN
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FEATURE
A A flipped flipped classroom classroom prompts prompts flipped flipped responses responses
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By By Kelcie Kelcie Lee Lee and and Ruby Ruby Shaw Shaw
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FEATURE
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00000 enior Ember Draffin hops off the bus, flustered. It’s 000000already 8 p.m., and Draffin has just arrived home. She is 00000 exhausted after a long, draining day filled with classes and extracurricular activities. As she collapses into her chair, Draffin suddenly remembers the hours of video lectures she must watch for homework on top of all of her other assignments. Frustrated, she pulls out her laptop and presses play on the first video. She can’t help but get deja vu from distance learning and the hours she would spend in her room staring at a screen watching her teachers. Draffin is just one of the many Lowell students who feel overburdened by the addition of video lectures to their traditional homework load.
MARLENA ROHDE
As Lowell transitions back to in-person learning, some teachers have continued using instructional tools from distance learning in their classes. While these teaching methods can be a positive addition to the classroom for both teachers and students, many students are finding some of these methods, especially video lectures, an undue burden. When Lowell closed its campus in March 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic, traditional systems of in-person learning were rendered ineffective online. This forced teachers to modify their teaching methods to fit the parameters of a digital classroom, changing test procedures, homework deadlines, adapting to google classroom and other digital tools. Additionally, to limit the amount of time students spent on screens, online classes were reduced to 35 minutes — 20 minutes shorter than classes prior to distance learning. With less synchronous class time with students, teachers tried to prioritize discussions, presentations, and other activities with student participation. Lectures were moved to asynchronous blocks and recorded for students to watch as videos. Through trial and error, teachers morphed their instructional methods and students adapted to new ways of learning. Now that school is back in person, one of the major distance learning tools that teachers have incorporated into in-person learning is the flipped classroom model. A flipped classroom is a teaching model where students are introduced to new content 0000
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through video lectures at home and practice working through it in the classroom. According to Monty Worth, an AP Government and Economics teacher who utilizes the flipped classroom system, this way of formatting a classroom existed before distance learning, despite it gaining popularity among teachers during that time. Because of its effectiveness, Worth has noticed the flipped classroom model continuing to be used by multiple other teachers this year. “We've realized that we can use a lot of those lectures that we made into videos last year,” Worth said. “It's great to have them as a resource.” Worth has assigned several lectures that he filmed over distance learning as homework, which has provided him more class time for discussions about the material the following day. For Worth, the flipped classroom style of teaching has been a success so far. He’s found that students engage with each other a lot more during class because, with the lectures assigned as homework, there’s more time in class to talk. “We have more class time to do simulations, to have students do debates and discussions, where students are more active,” Worth said. AP Statistics teacher Michael Ambrose is another teacher using the flipped classroom approach. Ambrose assigns a video lecture almost every day for students to watch at home, giving students the entire class time to work in groups on practice problems. “There's no trying to figure out problems on your own at home,” Ambrose said. “We do the work in class instead of students going home and doing it, struggling, and then falling behind.” Like Worth, Ambrose has noticed a change in the classroom environment after his shift to the flipped classroom model. Moving the lectures online has allowed Ambrose to dedicate most
“If you're interacting with three people who are sitting right next to you, you're engaged, you're awake and you're laughing and working together.”
of his class time to doing group work and practice problems, which has resulted in more interactive and energetic classes. “The atmosphere is so much more lively, especially block zero is wide awake,” Ambrose said. “If you're interacting with three people who are sitting right next to you, you're engaged, you're awake and you're laughing and working together.” Ambrose feels that this new system has also allowed him to build stronger connections conne0000000
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FEATURE with his students. Because he is no longer limited to lecturing at the board during class, Ambrose has begun walking around the classroom, chatting with students and answering questions. “Students know me way better, because I'm circulating around and talking to them and joking around,” he said. While teachers have felt the positive effects of the video lectures inside of the classroom, students have had trouble dealing with them outside of the classroom. Draffin has mixed feelings regarding recorded lectures assigned by her AP Government teacher. Although they have allowed for more engaging in-person classes, take-home lectures have been very time consuming for her. She often feels frustrated because they tend to pile up when she prioritizes more time sensitive homework, leaving hours of d00
noticed that her classes feel less rushed when take-home lectures are assigned, because teachers no longer have to fit lectures into the designated class period time. “Teachers have more time to answer questions and joke around and have just a bit more fun with the class,” Draffin said. Although there are collectively mixed opinions regarding the use of video lectures, the root of the issue lies in the disconnect and lack of communication between students and teachers. Both Worth and Ambrose are unaware of how students feel about their modified teaching methods and have not checked in with students recently to see if their experiences mirror teacher’s positive opinions on video lectures. Blacker believes that teachers need to hear the impacts that video lectures have on students outside of 00
“If you have to go home and watch these half an hour video lectures, it's like class is 50 percent longer." SPREAD DESIGN BY MADELEINE JOHNSTON AND SARAH LIU
videos ahead. “They're really easy to fall behind on because they are just a 30-minute thing, and then you’re like, ‘I can do that later,’” Draffin said. “Then you have to do four hours of lectures in a night, which definitely is not fun. I have had to do that.” Draffin is not the only student struggling with virtual lectures. Senior Edward Pilotte, a student in both Ambrose and Worth’s classes, has had a hard time with the extra work from recorded lectures. For Pilotte, watching lectures at home feels like an extension of the school day, especially as the lectures get longer. “If you have to go home and watch these half an hour video lectures, it's like class is 50 percent longer,” Pilotte said. Since the transition from distance learning to in person learning, classes have reverted to their old length of 55 minutes, a 20-minute extension. Online lectures, coupled with longer class times, have left Pilotte feeling worn out by the end of the day. Anjali Blacker, another senior who is currently taking both Mr. Worth and Mr. Ambrose’s classes, feels that the flipped classroom approach has made homework more stressful. She is concerned that if she misses something in a video lecture, she won’t be able to pick up on new material and complete worksheets or other assignments in class. “To have the actual ‘learning’ being done as ‘homework’ can be kind of frustrating,” Blacker said. “I feel like it puts a lot more pressure on homework, which is already stressful and already a lot.” Despite having negative experiences with watching lectures at home, students acknowledge that the in-class experience has become more enjoyable and resulted in some positive outcomes. Blacker finds that she is able to partake in more active discussions when she applies what she learns at home to in-class material. She believes that classes become more engaging without in-class lectures. Draffin shares a similar positive experience. She has 00000
the classroom. “I’m a proponent of teachers trying to get feedback from their classes, because there are things that work for them, and things that work for us,” she said. “I feel like being able to have that discussion to find that point that works for everyone is important.” The new flipped classroom implementation with video lectures has been a change to the traditional classroom environment. This adjustment has led to contrasting experiences for teachers and students, some better than others. In some cases, well intentioned teachers have been unaware of the excessive homework burden video lectures have placed on students. On the other hand, students acknowledge that although at times difficult to manage, the return to in-class school is an ongoing process. “I don't think that we're ever going to have a system that works for everyone,” Draffin said. “We're still getting used to this and still figuring it out a little more.”
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RYSON SUN
The Lowell October 2021
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CATEGORY COLUMN
Making my way towards the mirror: my struggle with body image
By Ava Alberts
ILLUSTRATION BY NICOLE WONG SPREAD DESIGN BY LAYLA WALLERSTEIN
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The Lowell October 2021
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1234567s I restlessly tossed about my floral printed bedding, 1234567I dreamt of the calories that I had consumed that 1234567day. The numbers gyrated across my vision, building in intensity until my ears were filled with a high-pitched screeching sound. Overwhelmed, my panting startled me awake. Reaching into the darkness, I grasped my sheets in hopes of returning to a state of full consciousness. Although half asleep, I wandered out of my dark bedroom and down the wooden-floored hallway. The bathroom light flickered on after I flipped the switch. Gazing at my reflection in the mirror above the sink, I cinched in the waist of my sweatshirt and began to sob. I didn’t used to be obsessed with my weight. In March 2020, school was shut down and my extracurriculars such as soccer were put on pause as the pandemic began to take hold of the world. My normal routine and activities suspended, I started to spend more time on social media to find comfort and familiarity. TikTok, one of the apps I use the most, curated a homepage dominated by videos that promoted a popular fitness influencer on YouTube. A Google search of her name revealed workout videos titled, “Get Abs in 2 Weeks,” “Tiny Waist and Round Butt Workout,” and “10 Min Morning Routine to Burn Belly Fat.” Skinny and toned, this video creator was the blueprint of society’s body ideals. It was impossible for me to not compare myself to her — I couldn’t help but look down at my body and criticize it for not having the same defined abs or lean legs that she did. It felt as if my worth would be greater if I was skinny like this YouTuber, so I sought to change my physique through morning exercises.
I believed that if I became skinny, then I would be happy. With this newfound ideal to live up to, I set my abrasive alarm for 7 a.m. each morning in an attempt to force myself to work out. No matter how fatigued I felt, I dragged myself out of bed to stop the disturbing sound and put on my exercise clothes. Drenched in sweat, I mimicked the YouTube fitness instructor’s movements while she energetically smiled, waving at the camera without a sign of perspiration. Amidst her workouts, I counted down the minutes until the end, dreading the next movement I had to complete. Despite my aversion towards this routine, I followed it every day because I believed that if I became skinny, then I would be happy. When my abs failed to materialize within two weeks, I turned to other ways of achieving the body I wanted. I immersed myself in YouTube pages that promoted calorie-counting, obsessively weighing myself, and over-exercising to the point of pure exhaustion. My mind became constantly absorbed with thoughts about
about food guilt. I started to view many of the foods that had once brought me joy and comfort as villains. Oftentimes I would skip family dinners or excursions with friends because I did not know precisely how many calories were in the food we would eat together. It felt as if I was stuck in an endless restrictive cycle. These restrictive eating habits changed my perfectly functioning body into one that experienced recurrent episodes of weakness in daily activities, including sports. As soccer practices started up again in March 2021, I was excited, believing that I was now stronger from my exercise and diet changes. I eagerly walked onto the fog-enveloped turf field and happily greeted my team. When it came time to scrimmage, I braced myself as my teammate dribbled towards me for a one-on-one play. Our shoulders locked and I was instantly shoved to the ground. As I laid there catching my breath, staring into the opaque-white sky, I finally came to the realization: I was making my body weak.
I finally came to the realization: I was making my body weak. This revelation was just the first step. It took me much reflection and time to figure out how I would reclaim my food freedom. I started to open up to trusted people in my life, coming clean about my mangled relationship with my body. My dad redirected me to healthier forms of exercise, convincing me to start weightlifting. This would come to change my mentality completely by helping me realize that my muscles need proper nutrition to grow and that food is not the enemy. Rather than struggling internally, I was finally finding positive ways to release my self-destructive thoughts and take back control of my mind. My journey hasn’t come full circle yet. As I’ve returned to inperson school, I have struggled to adjust to a routine different from that of quarantine. With added social pressures, everyday activities such as picking out an outfit in the morning or eating lunch around people can seem daunting. But the healing process isn’t linear, and that’s okay. I now know that I have the tools to mend my relationship with my body, and the motivation to make it happen. Moving away from social media use and involving myself more in real-life interaction such as spending time with friends has helped me avoid unfair comparisons. I have found that weightlifting has been the main contributor in changing my outlook on my self-image. Instead of constantly trying to shrink my body, weightlifting has encouraged me to want to grow stronger not only physically, but also mentally. With this newfound strength, I can finally step out of the darkness, make my way towards the mirror and see my body in a positive light.
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The Lowell October 2021
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