We are nearing the end of this school year and it will definitely be something that we will look back at and share with others. Distance learning is something new that we’ve never experienced before and can be quite scary to some. Both teachers and students were unsure on what to do in the beginning and still trying to find new ways to adjust during this time. But we managed to do it together even when there were ups and downs.

I’ve had an online class before where our teacher would post assignments for us to do with just a few instructions or make us learn concepts on our own. After hearing that we would begin distance learning, I wasn’t too worried and thought it would be the same. I miscalculated.

During distance learning, I honestly had a hard time with it. There were times where I was unsure if I was attaining the information correctly since our teachers weren’t there to fully explain and extend on them. I would constantly try to search up YouTube videos and websites to help me before bombarding my teachers with emails about questions I had. Class meetings also were difficult and the lags were terrible, I had to hope that I wasn’t missing any important information as the audio cuts off. There were also times where I had to do something else which blocked me from going to all of my class meetings and made things more stressful. I felt that I was more distracted and less motivated to do my work as the days passed by.

“learning through the textbook by yourself is very draining as things are explained better through the teacher or learning experiences”

-Veronic Trinh

But, although there were some cons, there were also some pros that helped me thrive through this process. My teachers were starting to find to new techniques to help us learn and understand lessons. The best strategy I found useful was when teachers would make YouTube videos or Loom videos for us to watch which allowed us to refer back to them if needed. It also felt as if I was in the classroom with the teacher teaching us a new lesson as I watched the videos. The new grading policy also made it less stressful as it allowed me to do my work without having to worry too much if I turned it in late. Overall teachers were very supportive which made this new experience bearable. I appreciated the teachers who gave us work beforehand in order for us to plan out our week. I also noticed my teachers giving more artsy and creative assignments like painting or drawing which allowed us to have a chance to have fun while doing homework.

Here’s an artwork that one of my classmates made:

-Katie Ho

Hopefully next year will be better with new and improved techniques that will allow every student to be able to feel motivated about school and have a face-to-face experience with their new teachers and classmates. I personally feel that a block schedule could be the best of both worlds where we would have a face-to-face teaching and learning experience but also have online learning on some days. Whether we will continue distance learning or have a few days where we are at school, just remember, that we will get through this together.

Best Wishes to Everybody and Have a Great Summer ❤