Bowie High School students weigh in on virtual learning

Dillon Uribe, 12th

Dillon Uribe, 12th

Vianney Guardado-Alvarez

COVID-19 has had a huge impact on everyone’s lives, routines have been broken for months and the only way to continue learning has been through virtual classes.

The days of “not wanting to go to school” have completely disappeared and now attending classes physically is what every student wants, nobody really knew how lucky the students were to have the opportunity to see their teachers, classmates and coaches face to face.

This new way of learning does not make many students feel comfortable enough to enjoy it, but some say it’s not that bad. “My feelings towards this virtual classes thing is bittersweet,” Dillon Uribe, 12th, said.

Obviously there have been advantages and disadvantages in this situation. Some students remain unwilling to take classes this way because they are not 100 percent engaged.

“Some disadvantages for me is that we won’t be able to ask enough questions as we would on face-to-face classes, or the fact that some students will take virtual classes for granted. Some advantages are that we are able to work more efficiently, and we have enough time to finish our work,” Uribe said.

There have been ups and downs in grades this year. Some students have found this change better, because they don’t feel as much pressure and that helps them to keep up those grades. But, on the other hand, others have found it difficult because they feel stressed and their grades have been going down.

“I’m doing better than face-to-face classes but not better as a big increase,” Uribe said.

Despite all this that is happening, teachers have been very understanding and that has motivated their students to stay on track. “My teachers so far are very comprehensive, and I feel that empathy is a key nowadays,” Uribe said.

This year has been a bit more frustrating than it should have been for the class of 2021. Aside from thinking about college and adult life, seniors also have to worry about the strict protocol that will be followed, and how the events that are important for them will be so different.

“The most difficult part for me is not being able to enjoy my senior year as I would have wanted to,” Uribe said.