During the COVID-19 pandemic, few have seen as much change and difficulty as public schools. With the constant changing of regulations and restrictions put in place by the province of New Brunswick students have been forced to adapt. One of the recurring challenges of being both a student and teacher has been the addition of blended learning used in the 2020-2021 school year, as well as the introduction of complete online learning used during our current school year to accommodate the return of all students attending school in person every day.
Students and teachers are often forced to make the switch between in-person learning to online learning on a dime. There has been a great effort made by all of those involved in the transition from in person to online learning at Leo Hayes High School this past month and we at The Mane want that to be recognized. That being said, online learning is not ideal for anyone, so we interviewed four students from Leo Hayes, one from each grade level (9-12) to see how they coped with the most recent bout of online learning.
We asked four questions to each student about their online routine, things they have learned from online school, how assessment week went online and finally, how they felt about going back to school on Wednesday, February 2nd, 2022. It was refreshing to see that not everything was going terribly, and we hope that these responses can be a beacon of hope in a difficult time.
The first person we interviewed was a grade 12 student named Mae. Mae talked about their experience of learning how to create a healthy school and home balance when transitioning from in person learning to online. “Something I’ve learned from my online classes is how to navigate a self learning style, and how to condition myself to continue school at home. This was difficult because, for me, home was always a work and school free environment. Like, I’ll take homework with me and stuff, but home was for relaxing and ‘me time.’ So, when we went online it was hard to redefine home as a workspace.” They went on to express their excitement about rejoining the in-person classroom for the start of semester two. “I’m excited for semester two in person learning, mostly because my classes are very hands on and therefore difficult to do online. As well, I think it’ll help me get back into a better headspace with my home and school environment!” We are very impressed with the way all students at Leo Hayes are embracing the new environment, and we think Mae is doing an amazing job!
The next person we interviewed was a 11th grade student named Jaden. We asked Jaden about the routine they settled on for the month of online learning. “On most days I get up around 7:30 and I usually (try to) get some exercise in, then I have breakfast and whatnot. I really try to take time before school because it ties me down for much of the day. Then at 9:00 am classes start, and I pretty much stay in the same spot all day, aside from getting up between classes for breaks.” We asked Jaden how they adjusted to assessment week online. “It wasn't too bad actually! I'm glad we don't have exams or anything too huge anymore. It was stressful at first because of all the work due but getting it all done was super fulfilling in the end.” Jaden highlighted the importance of taking care of yourself and we think that’s something everyone can practice more often.
The next person we sat down with was tenth-grade student Anaya. We asked Anaya to discuss something she learned while attending online classes. “Online [learning] is pretty easy for me as I get to work independently most of the time, which is how I thrive, but I’ve learned my environment directly impacts my motivation. When I’m at school I take for granted the fact that I have this space that is dedicated to my growth and learning.” Anaya touched on a frequent issue that a lot of students have with online school – motivation while at home. She too went on to explain how difficult it is to separate her home space from school space while online.
The final student we had the pleasure of speaking with was a 9th grade student named Emily. We asked Emily about how she was feeling given the transition back to in-person learning at the start of semester two. “Going back for semester two - I feel is good because trying to switch teams’ classes and meeting your teacher would be chaos.” Emily feels optimistic going forward into semester two and we agree with her!
Speaking with these four lovely students at Leo Hayes High School has given an optimistic view of online learning and education during the pandemic in general. We know that not all students have had success during the online learning period but we here at The Mane are incredibly proud of all the hard work everyone has done.