March of last year gave birth to a litany of issues stemming from the unpreparedness of our nation. One particular question educators and students alike were burdened with was “How do we efficiently maintain and instill safety in students, whilst properly educating them in a manner akin to the scholastic months prior?” This question isn’t feasibly answered, and the current education measures are detrimental to students for a multitude of facets.

Student motivation

First and foremost, in Garland ISD, students aren’t mandated to consistently keep cameras turned on, thus it’s impossible to know if a student is even present in class to begin with, aside from roll call, which still fails in deterring students from returning to bed. The evidence that students’ grades have slipped dramatically is overwhelming, while on the other hand, mine haven’t been this good thus far in high school.

There’s a prevalent disconnect among teacher-student relations as most of them haven’t even seen their students’ faces, thereby diminishing any personal interaction with teachers and students which is vital to a student’s motivation to learn. Due in part to the lack of  personal teaching, virtual students feel as though they are robots, monotonously completing assignment after assignment devoid of any reason or goal behind it besides achieving a superficial number in which the basis for their scholastic happiness lies.

The in-person student body, however, are consistently keeping up with grades while maintaining a decent relationship with their peers and teachers. The students should be the beneficiaries of a social-oriented workspace in which they are able to connect with their peers, rather than stare at names on a screen and routinely complete work in silence. The Board of Education’s intent should always be that of the student’s education and well-being.

Priorities

The notions of safety that the Board views in virtual learning is unjust; in person is and will continue to be the superior option. With the imminent national distribution of the vaccines, the foreboding fear of a mass breakout is a clear overreaction. As long as students adhere to the current rules and regulations established, safety shouldn’t be a concern.

The academic stability of the students are taking a nosedive, therefore keeping a virtual learning option does not compute. The virtual option has taken too much of a toll on everyone to continue existing.

I’m certain the Board will see this and take action, removing the virtual option entirely and preserving  the student body’s mental, emotional, and academic stability. This newfound situation the world’s dealing with is rife with issues, and adaptability is all we can hope for.