Tomorrow is the last day of my sophomore year, am I ready? No, I am not ready to accept that. I feel like this year had so potential to be better than it’s playing out in reality. I was always told by many that out of all four years of high school, sophomore and junior year were the most affecting. Was this true? In a way, yes, these two levels would be considered the most important years of high school as sophomore year prepares students for the determining tests that they will have in junior year. Also within these two years, students are solidifying the friends, careers, and lifestyle that they are to carry on for most of their future adult life.

Because of the pandemic, a third of the year was cut off and that time lost can’t be made up. Freshman lost the freshman experience of high school, sophomores are less prepared for the coming tests, junior had to stress about taking their important tests like APs, and seniors lost their prom and graduation season. All grade levels have lost the opportunity to create many memories in this current period.

In place of attending school physically, we were told to do distance learning. At first glance, it would seem like a dream come true, student have more time to sleep and have free time all while having class over internet calls. For some this was true, but overall, it wasn’t a real dream come true as we eventually see put how draining this system was. As time passed, we realized how lonely we were as we aren’t surrounded by our friends like we usually are, how many distraction are around us at home, how hard learning through a screen can be, and so much more.

With distance learning, students are given the ability to choose how to learn, their work ethic, and work speed. However, because of this, many have come to find out that this causes them to be more laid back to the point of procrastination, which never ends well. Some go the point where they are frustrated to work on assignments that are longer than the standard assignments given to them and that can greatly affect them when we are to come back to physical school. Aside from that, any problem would the limitation to how much students can learn and receive help from teachers. As much as asking the teacher for help through meetings and email, there will always be a obstacle to the students in learning the full concept like how they would in class.

In the duration of distance learning, I learned that learning at home is so much harder than we give credit. With having so many distractions that are within reach that stop me from focusing, I have learned some things to help me endure the remain time left. I learned that having my phone far away from me is the most effective as I have no ability to text my friends, play games, or scroll through social media. Having a to-do list is especially important as it tells me what assignments I need to complete before others and help me establish a weekly schedule to ensure I have all my work done. What didn’t work for me during this whole quarantine period would be how some classes give out more work than necessary that is harder than that at school, and expect us to turn it all in perfect at the same time. Worse thing is that most classes have all the assignments, quizzes, and tests assigned and due on Fridays. I understand it gives the teacher more time to grade it over the weekend, but Fridays are meant to be a slower day as students don’t have classes and can ease into the weekends.

If this was to continue onto next year, I hope that a possibility that would take place would be to allow certain groups to attend school. These specific groups would be formed by the grade levels with people that desire to return to learning at school physically. This would help some as some of these students could be the help that they need without having to wait and understand the solution through typed messages from their teachers or peers. It would help the ones that feel confined in their home and want to go outside and have a change of view. It can also help them complete their work and get back on the effective work train that they used to be on as they can have a quiet environment without any true distractions to stop them from doing their work to the best of their ability.

Hopefully one day, the current situations will get better and students can have the freedom to return to school and see their friends, classes, and teachers without any issue. It might take some time, but there’s hope in the future that things will change for the better.