301 days. 

301 days since we last went into class

Since we last heard the dreaded first hour bell

Or rushed out to the pink lot after the last bell

March 13 2020 was our last “normal” day, and although sleeping in is nice, many of us began asking- When do we get to go back? This question has sparked a lot of debate all over the country. WIth COVID-19 numbers rising and many seeing the impacts close to home, most have deemed it unsafe to return to school. However, we must ask how this is impacting our students, and if the damages done to mental health are worth risking the health of our students.

As we saw some debates spark up this week I sat down with students to hear their thoughts on the matter. 

Jake Anagryous

Jake, a senior here at Dakota, was nice enough to sit down with me and offer some of his thoughts on if we should get back into school. Jake believes that in person learning should be an option for those who feel safe and ready to go back, and those who do not should be able to stay online. For those who do return, he sees a mask mandate and other social distancing precautions being set in place. Jake was honest in his opinions and told me he felt like even if social distancing was set in place it wouldn’t be effective because many students wouldn’t follow the procedures. Jake also believed it would take away from the school experience, leaving us with an even more disappointing experience. 

I then began to ask Jake more hypothetical questions on how we would solve certain problems and how COVID will impact schools in the future. If a COVID outbreak was to occur at Dakota, Jake sees it best to notify those who came in contact and get a confirmed negative from those people. Of course we would start to see COVID screenings before entering school (makes me cringe at the thought of having to get up earlier)- Temperature checks and travel quarantines would be in effect. With the new COVID vaccine I asked if Jake felt it should be added to the list of mandatory vaccines, he was hesitant at first and said he could definitely see it happen; however, Jake felt, in the end, we should leave it as a choice to students, but see it as mandatory for teachers.

I then asked about our teachers and staff who are worried about the COVID virus. Jake felt if social distancing was set in place and the vaccine was taken, it should be enough to keep them safe. He saw that in-person learning was more effective as the teacher needs to be there with students to keep them engaged and have a deeper connection. 

Jake felt the stress from online learning has become too much for many students. The lack of motivation and structure causes many students to give up on work and lose hope for schoolwork. As nice as sleeping in is, it seems that the loss of social connection in school has caused many to give up trying this year. 

As we wait to see what the board will vote on this is only one side of the argument. With new procedures being put in place in-person school may happen in the near future. For now we wait and wait to see what life is like in 301 days.