Start of Second Semester as a Virtual Student
Media by Lajja Patel
The semester has been a busy start due the hardships that come with juggling seven classes at once. My work space tends to get messier as the school day progresses, and I continue to struggle in staying organized and keeping up with my classes.
The start of second semester has been a challenging adjustment to say the least.
Continuing school virtually means more hours of attempting to stay attentive throughout my classes and the new schedule makes school a more demanding experience of testing my attention span.
The schedule for the semester is the district’s way of gradually bringing back normal school life. For students though, the shift to double the classes compared to just three or four is tough to get used to initially.
First semester was the most relaxing few months I have had in my high school experience thus far. As a junior, this school year is meant to be rigorous; however, I have not felt under pressure and my work ethic has improved because it was easier to focus on fewer classes at a time.
I was disappointed to find out about the switch back to a quarter with seven classes because not only will there be an abundant workload, but the school day also has been stretched out to match traditional bell times.
School now ends at 3:17 p.m., which for a virtual student like me means staring at the screen for an additional few hours.
Midway through the lesson, it often seems like I am hearing a string of words that make no sense.
School is mandatory, homework is given via Canvas and checking social media every few minutes is hard to avoid, so the total screen time is continuing to grow.
It’s tiring to sit at my desk and focus on every lecture through a screen. Midway through the lesson, it often seems like I am hearing a string of words that make no sense.
A few alterations could be made for virtual students to aid them in staying focused and concentrated.
A mid-week school day could be changed to an A-day schedule in which students would have all seven classes and each period would be shorter. This way students would be more likely to stay engaged because their classes would be changing constantly and there would be less chances of getting bored learning a single subject.
Another possible modification could be to elongate the time in between classes. In this time, students online could take a break from screens and technology and feel refreshed for their next class.
Rockwood is putting forth a well-organized effort to keep students online from being overwhelmed. With small changes, the second semester could become productive without as many wearing obstacles.
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Lajja Patel (she/her), senior, is the features editor for the Marquette Messenger. This will be her second year on staff. Lajja also is part of the Key...
