Fall academic plans

WHAT COMES WHAT COMES NEXT? NEXT? STUDENTS, STAFF LOOK TOWARD NEXT YEAR

A CASUAL CONTEST — Sophomore Archie Webber and his teammates stand in front of a portable volleyball net outside of the Palo Alto High School Tower Building during lunch. “I have really enjoyed connecting with people who I haven’t seen in over a year and being able to play games like volleyball and spikeball on the quad with them,” Webber said.

DESKS WITHOUT dividers. Faces without masks. School without Zoom. An unknown world to in-person Palo Alto High School students. These images have been turned from familiar to foreign due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, but after over a year in isolation, the end may be approaching.

As of May 18, Santa Clara County is in the COVID-19 yellow tier, in part due to the increase of vaccinations — with over 1.2 million county residents vaccinated as of May 19.

According to a Verde Magazine opt-in survey of 213 Paly students conducted between May 10 and May 16, 96% of students plan to get vaccinated for COVID-19, with 52% having received at least one dose as of May 16.

The subsequent decrease in COVID-19 cases has led Governor Gavin Newsom to pledge to lift California’s mask mandate by June 15.

As places like theaters, gyms, public transportation and restaurants start to reopen, schools plan to follow. However, students, staff and community members have differing visions for our new campus normal come August.

Staff perspectives

“Back to normal is our plan,” Palo Alto Unified School District Superintendent Don Austin said in an interview with Verde last month.

Austin says he is confident that school can return safely and believes the success of the current hybrid model proves this.

“We’ve shown that we can bring students back, even in the purple tier, prior to vaccines, and do it safely,” Austin said. “So I think our track record is pretty good right now. We [the district] feel pretty confident.”

Many teachers are looking forward to the possibility of returning to in-person school and reestablishing a sense of normalcy.

“I can lecture on Zoom just like I can lecture in a classroom, but it's just seeing through something that has changed what students know and what they can do, then we can be flexible enough to accommodate that change and not try to force anyone to do extra work to catch up to what they would have been in some hypothetical version of COVID.”

Student perspectives

Students have become increasingly frustrated with distance learning, and hope to return to school in-person in August.

“At the beginning of the school year, we were all excited to be learning from home, but now it’s getting really tiring and draining,” said Ashley Hung, Associated Student Body sophomore vice president.

Senior class president-elect Mathew Signorello-Katz said he decided to drop “Stage Tech” –– one of his electives at Paly where he ran the behind-the-scenes of Paly theater performances –– due to the realities of virtual learning, and will not be continuing the activity in the future.

“I spent so much time in my day on Zoom, the last thing I wanted to do at the end of the day was spend more time on Zoom,” Signorello-Katz said.“It [Stage Tech] was a very fun hobby. It was never

SENSATIONAL SPIKEBALL — A student smashes the ball against the Spikeball net towards an opposing player while playing on the Palo Alto High School Quad. “Having spikeball as a way to meet new people has been really fun and I get to play with people that I love,” sophomore Evie Kramer said.

people as they walk in and having goofy, off the cuff conversations about informal things ... that make up the bulk of your day,” journalism teacher Brian Wilson said. Despite anticipation surrounding the return to school next fall, teachers do not want to disregard the lessons gained from

“a full year of disI would hope that we don’t tance learning. “I would ho-forget about it [the pan- pe that we don't demic], try to ignore it, forget about it [the pandemic], and go full speed ahead as try to ignore it, if it never happened.” and go full speed ahead as if it — DAVID COHEN, English teacher never happened,” English teacher David Cohen said. “I also hope that we don't turn it into an ongoing weight on our shoulders, where everything is constantly thought about in terms of catching up and adjusting.” Though Cohen said he hopes to use this past year to help improve next year, he also wants students and teachers to be able to move forward. “It's our job to meet students where they are,” Cohen said. “If everyone went

STUDIOUS STUDENTS — Sophomore Alex Landolfi and his classmates sit in an almost empty Palo Alto High School classroom with plastic dividers all around them. This classroom environment is the closest thing to "normal" students have experienced since schools turned virtual in March 2020. “It [in person school] can feel like you are back in regular school as opposed to just on a Zoom in a classroom,” Landolfi said.

something that I was really considering as you definitely couldn’t do during COVID. at PAUSD high schools during the 2014a career, but I really enjoyed doing it, so if I think everyone is just more eager to see 2015 school year, according to the PAUSD the pandemic never happened, I probably live performances and go to big events.” website. This learning model allows stuwould have continued.” dents to complete work for certain classes

Students are also looking forward to Learning from distance learning without having to be present in the classgathering with friends as cases decline and Among students and staff, there is room. restrictions are lifted. a consensus on one fundamental belief: However, now that every student is

“It’s really difficult to make friends this distance learning will never be forgotten. familiar with online learning, some teachyear because we’re not able to communicate Despite its drawbacks, virtual learning has ers, including Wilson, feel blended learning in person,” Hung said. Though people have been able to spend time with friends in “At the beginning of the school year, we were all excited to be learning from opened teachers’ eyes to the benefits of an instructional style that does not require all students and classes can strive to integrate more virtual elements into their curriculum than they had previously. “People who say everything about Zoom is terrible and everything about in-person is great, or vice versa, are misssmall groups over home, but now it’s getting teachers to be ing the fact that it does not have to be a the past couple of months, few have really tiring and draining.” present in one room. binary relationship,” Wilson said. “The two can coexist and you can successfully and efbeen able to interact in large groups — ASHLEY HUNG, sophomore “There are times where … fectively run a class in which you do some things online.” due to COVID-19 you just want Cohen voices a similar wish and hopes restrictions. that energy of a bunch of people in the to use the experience of distance learning

“One thing I’m looking forward to room physically, at the same time, [with] to improve flexible learning options in the is going to concerts again — me and my all these cool conversations happening,” future, saying: friends are looking into that,” junior Agnes Wilson said. “But I don't think it has to be “I think if we can start to use our expeMar said. “I honestly wasn’t a big concert all the time.” rience and a little more wisdom, and a little fan, pre-COVID, but … I’m really look- This type of class, incorporating both more flexibility to allow high school to look ing forward to hopefully going to some virtual and in-person teaching, is known as a little bit different to meet different needs, concerts this year because that is something “Blended Learning,” and was first offered that would be a wonderful thing.” v