COVID-19 has deeply affected the Collegiate community, whether in how we learn and operate inside of school or in how we live our lives outside of school. Especially during the quarantine period in the spring of 2020, students had to endure the challenge of maintaining their studies online through Zoom. While on Zoom, many students felt disconnected from their classmates and teachers and found themselves having to manage school in a foreign work environment. In addition, students had to attempt to stay focused at home while avoiding ample distractions. I asked Junior Class President Shrey Jhalani for his thoughts on the difficulties of online school, and he said, “I think the hardest aspect of online school was having to stare at a screen all day and maintain focus. I would find myself getting tired a lot earlier in the day and zoning out during class sometimes. I’m also pretty sure my eyesight got worse.” Shrey highlights the key disadvantages of online school such as students falling victim to “Zoom fatigue” and struggling to focus. Despite the overwhelming negatives of the outbreak, Shrey Jhalani also emphasizes some of the few positive outcomes, stating, “I think, looking at the positive sides of things, a silver lining to the whole situation is that we kind of got a reset. This time has helped me realize what is important to me and how fortunate I am to be able to say that I am healthy and safe.”
In that same spring, the global pandemic shut down sports across the country, sadly leaving seniors to miss out on their last season of Collegiate sports. While stuck at home, students also had to find other ways to exercise and stay fit. One way that the Collegiate community managed to do so was through fitness Zoom meetings. For example, the Collegiate soccer team held Zoom meetings in which Collegiate athletes performed fitness activities and practiced dribbling drills.
Fast forward three months and it is the 2020-2021 school year. Throughout this year, students faced the challenge of dealing with a hybrid learning system, in which some students and teachers were online and some were in person. This system led to communication issues as a result of technological problems. Junior Matthew Deluca said, “I think due to the online zoom classes, students including myself tended to get distracted much more easily. The mere fact that the teacher was not in the room with you and that you are in the comfort of your home didn’t make for a good learning atmosphere, especially since I was one of only a few people in my classes who had stayed online during the fall semester.” Junior Teddy Pitofksy stated, “I felt that even though the circumstances of last year's learning were far from perfect, they could have been a lot worse. Additionally, those attending classes in person had to follow certain Covid-19 guidelines, including the maintenance of six feet of distance and the constant wearing of masks. The Covid-19 guidelines also restricted many important learning tools such as hands-on labs in the sciences, which are crucial to a holistic education.
On top of the challenges inside the classroom, many struggles troubled students outside of school. For instance, Covid-19 restricted athletic activities and opportunities for students. Avid tennis player Nicholas Murphy ’23 stated: “Covid has made it much more difficult to play tennis since there aren’t as many tournaments nearby, and some programs in Colleges are shutting down, so that isn’t an option in many schools anymore. I have had to travel much farther away to showcase my ability in tournaments to recruiters.” Although there is still a mask mandate, the Covid-19 restrictions have loosened a bit, and a number of activities that the community has missed out on are returning, such as a fall sports season, fully in-person classes, an open courtyard, hot lunches, and more. If the community continues to stay safe, it can potentially return to normalcy in the future.
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