10 minute read
BETTER WHEN WE ARE TOGETHER
Better When We’re together
Advertisement
By Nancy Wilder
For a poetry presentation in eighth-grade English, Katelyn Y. shared a poem by Kimberly Casey called “The Golden Hour,” which includes these lines: “Every other seat empty,/ each face masked, some with simple fabric, others/medicalgrade filtration set beneath serious eyes.” Casey poses the question, “How do we grieve/one loss among so many?” Naturally, the poem Katelyn chose led to a discussion about how the pandemic has impacted our lives. After several students shared their ideas, Mateen N. offered this bit of wisdom: “I don’t think we really know how the pandemic has affected us because we’re still in it.” This young scholar makes a powerful point, and educators have begun to understand only a portion of the wide ranging impact of the last two years. Yet, they are working diligently to address the myriad challenges that have arisen since March 2020. Rebuilding relationships and reestablishing community are among these challenges.
When the pandemic forced schools to transition to remote learning, the shockwaves reverberated loudly and quickly. The community disruption was palpable. With the help of technology, we could meet as a whole class or in small groups; however, the experience disrupted the natural flow of relationships. Seeing faces in Zoom rectangles pales in comparison to the in-person option. While educators pivoted to navigate unfamiliar technology and adopt new teaching methods, they also carried the deep concern about the wellbeing of their students. In a virtual world, how can they help struggling students? How will students react to the inability to laugh with their friends or play tetherball or collaborate with classmates? How will the lack of a morning “Hello, I’m glad you’re here” affect their social and emotional well-being? Do students have what they need to weather the storm?
During the 2020-21 school year, Pegasus transitioned to the HyFlex model, which allowed students the chance to learn in-person, online, or a combination of both. While grateful for these options for learning, the community was challenged and, nonetheless, felt the disruption. Meanwhile, students at home dealt with the challenges of technology, additional distractions, and social isolation. On campus, students stayed in the same classroom for much of the day and were unable to mingle with friends in other cohorts or classes.
Consequently, the eighth graders, the natural leaders on campus, became nearly invisible to the student body. Opportunities for leadership evaporated, and younger students missed the chance to see eighth graders in those leadership roles. Without in-person community gatherings, eighth graders missed the chance to fulfill the tradition of sitting on the back wall. Additionally, they did not have the long-awaited opportunities to lead sports teams or play lead roles in theater performances. Sports seasons, dances, field trips, outdoor education trips, and other group activities crowded the list of canceled events. Students lost connections, teachers lost connections, and parents lost connections.
We Thrive Together
To revive their communities, schools now must work to reestablish and rebuild what they lost. In her article “Well and Good,” Donna Orem, President of National Association of Independent Schools (NAIS), notes that “rebuilding schools around the concept of well-being may be the most important future work of independent schools, and the time to get started is now” (Independent School 2021, Summer p. 8). Embedded in the Pegasus culture has always been a focus on student well-being. When Dr. Laura Hathaway founded the school, she stressed the importance of educating the whole child. Although the tagline “a safe place to be smart” speaks of academic and intellectual safety, key parts of the Pegasus experience include activities where students can find a place to belong, a place to know others, and a place to be known. Face-to-face collaboration and teamwork give students multiple opportunities where they can “discover and develop their unique gifts” (Pegasus Mission Statement). For example, the annual monologue competition during Shakespeare Week in April sometimes allows a shy student not only the chance to dress as Macbeth but also a chance to shine. The middle school theater program often gives first-time performers a chance to discover their talent. Middle school advisory groups offer a small-group atmosphere where students can express their ideas and support each other.
Time Together
Among these Pegasus experiences that challenge students and help them build relationships with each other and with their teachers are the middle school outdoor education trips: AstroCamp in sixth grade, Catalina Island in seventh grade, and Arizona in eighth grade. Because of health and safety concerns, the current eighth graders missed both the sixthgrade trip to AstroCamp scheduled for May 2020, and the seventh-grade trip to Catalina Island in September 2020. Christine Palme, mother of Garrett ’16, Andrew ’18, Jenna ’21, and Jessica ’21, offers her perspective on the loss of those trips. Her older boys attended all three trips where they made “lifelong memories with childhood friends,” which her daughters missed in eighth grade. Look at any yearbook, where many eighth graders mention the Arizona trip as the highpoint of their final year at Pegasus. “It isn’t every day you have the chance to travel with fifty friends and classmates and experience exciting activities in a pretty amazing place,” Palme continued.
Additionally, the outdoor education trips allow students to gain confidence and learn independence. Pooneh Khazei, mother of Nadia ’17 and Kian ’22, recognizes the value in her daughter’s experiences, compared with those of her son, a current eighth grader. “Nadia has a stronger sense of being able to manage without us [parents] as she’s done it more often. She also has a higher tolerance for challenging living environments as a result of the camp conditions in Catalina,” Pooneh observed. Angie Karahalios, mother of Nick ’15, Christo ’17, Steven ’19, and James ’21, agrees. “The trips created a more holistic experience in learning, cooperating, and socializing with classmates who my kids didn’t necessarily hang out with. It was exciting to learn and bond at a different venue, especially in nature at the beautiful Grand Canyon.”
We Are Family
The return of outdoor education trips in middle school ushered in the return of important bonding experiences beyond the classroom. This past September, as the Class of 2022 boarded two buses headed to Arizona, there seemed to be a collective sigh of relief in those early morning hours. After many months of isolation and disappointment, the group finally had a chance to travel together, thanks to the detailed planning of the administration and Christine Bridges, the Activities and Athletics Director. According to Bridges, the trips provide opportunities for students to “push their limits outside their comfort zone and to live in close quarters with their classmates.” She recognizes the skills the
students need to be successful on the trips: self-management, responsibility, and self-awareness. “Students feel a sense of pride when they travel with their school,” Bridges said. “It’s also nice for them to make connections with their teachers in a different setting.”
Because students are away from their families during these trips, they become more of a family with their classmates and teachers. “It’s important to pry kids away from their parents and give them a somewhat independent living experience,” Kian K., an eighth grader, remarked. A classmate nodded in agreement. “The long bus rides forced us to have conversations because we spent so much time with the same group of people,” Marcus S. added. Hearing the din of conversations and laughter, playing card games in the bus aisle, and having the patience to listen to the entire rendition of “one hundred bottles of milk on the wall” united the community in celebration: we were finally together. The frequent laughter reminded us that yes, we are better when we’re together.
Dustan Bridges, eighth-grade math teacher, has chaperoned these trips for many years. “Kids grow up because they have to. It’s a non-optional maturing process. Especially for the students who joined Pegasus during seventh grade, before the trip, they knew only the kids in their cohorts,” Bridges said. Sophia M., one of these students, realized the value of the trip. “It allowed me to see my classmates and friends in a new way. There are so many fun opportunities to get to know people that I wouldn’t have at school. It was something really special.” Sharing a cabin, eating together, hiking Mount Humphreys, experiencing the splendor of the Grand Canyon, and finding their way through the dark, rocky lava tube gave students once-in-a-lifetime experiences that stay with them long after they graduate. Christina Ngo, eighth-grade social studies teacher, noticed a difference in the students. “They definitely have a stronger sense of how to support each other.” When they returned to school, the Class of 2022 felt more confident and more connected.
For the seventh-grade trip, the students had the chance to travel to Catalina Island. Remy Carl, middle school math teacher, appreciates getting to know her students in a different setting. “We have the chance to see each other as more than a teacher or a student.” At Catalina, the students hike, kayak, and snorkel. According to Carl, “The night snorkel challenges plenty of students. Having the chance to see bioluminescence makes them forget what they were afraid of.” Relying on each other through these challenging experiences in the natural world helps students overcome their fears together and build trust. Another key part of the growth that occurs during the Catalina trip involves students relying on chaperones and classmates to make it through the experience. Stepping outside their comfort zones often results in becoming physically or emotionally stressed. “We have to rely on each other to make it through the week. And the students have a chance to see teachers stretched, so they are reminded that we are also human beings,” Carl added.
Seventh graders Oliver C. and Aarya S. commented on the value of the experience. “We learned a lot of independence because we didn’t have our parents with us,” Oliver said. Aarya echoed this thought. “During the trip, we had to learn things by ourselves. It was hard for us, but in the end, we learned independence and creativity.” All of the students and teachers who leave the comfort of their routines during the trips return to Pegasus with a stronger sense of self and a greater appreciation for the people around them.
The success of these trips, along with the return of many in-person activities, has been a vital part of the rebuilding and reestablishing of the community. As Mateen suggested, we cannot make an accurate assessment of the wide-ranging impacts of the disruption and loss. Living with uncertainty, anxiety, and stress has taken its toll on every individual and on the community as a whole. Dealing with disappointment and readjusting our expectations, we have survived. The reassuring news is that we’re back together again, perhaps with a deeper sense of gratitude. Like caterpillars from our quarantined cocoons, we have emerged as a stronger, more appreciative, more resilient community.
Nancy Wilder spends her days in the Den of Scholars at The Pegasus School, where she enjoys teaching eighth-grade English and collecting humorous quotations from her young scholars. Contact: nwilder@thepegasusschool.org
Pegasus teachers help students feel comfortable and feel that they belong. When I was a student at Pegasus, I felt at home, and I saw that the teachers were happy to be there. I wanted my children to have the same feeling of belonging at their school that I had. The teachers at Pegasus foster a sense of community and help students build self-esteem, encouraging them to ask questions and learn from their mistakes. At Pegasus, students can be themselves.
