Time to Go Back Full Time?
As the COVID numbers in Massachusetts regarding cases and deaths are improving, our state leaders such as Governor Baker are starting to initiate the plan of having students fully back in school by the end of spring.
Now, it is clear that most people, if not all, are looking forward to getting back to normal, but is it too soon?
Let’s find out how FHS students are feeling about this news of possibly being fully back in school very soon.
Junior Rylee Botelho feels that, “starting full time school back up so late in the year is a bad idea. Everyone has gotten used to the flow of things this year… and changing it again would just cause chaos. Also, I think that if we try to start up again, the spread would just get bigger and cause us to have another hybrid year for 2022.”
Emerson Bourgault reflected on past years and how tough it would be to go back fully in school after such an odd year: “It would definitely be difficult to adapt to full time school again since I only go in every other week and get out of school almost two hours earlier than I did last year. It’s crazy looking back at the very busy schedule I endured my sophomore year with honors and AP classes along with sports.”
Based on this, Ms. Bourgault stated, “I believe our best choice would be to finish how we are and wait until next year so we start the new school year fresh.”
Many students I spoke with felt similarly to Ms. Botelho and Ms. Bourgault as they do not know how easy it will be to go from essentially spending half of the school year at home to the full 180 days in school.
Although we have been fully in school for the majority of our lives prior to the pandemic, it seems to be a hard idea to grasp for some as the pandemic has affected our lives greatly.
On the flip side, some students are very eager to return back to school full time.
For example, Ireland Nordstrom stated, “It would obviously be a drastic change but I believe I am ready for this because I learn best on my in person weeks anyway. After being hybrid for almost a year now, it would definitely take time getting used to, but I’m sure we will all be able to successfully handle the full time in school by the end of spring.”
Many like Ms. Nordstrom finds the in school weeks much easier to learn. So, if anything, going back to school full time may benefit students as they will be able to receive more learning time and opportunities than the hybrid plan has to offer.
Looking forward to the MCAS (Massachusetts Comprehensive Assessment System) and future standardized testing, freshman Sophia Fleurent is anything but apprehensive about starting full time school so soon.
“I think we should go back full time ASAP, and that it wouldn’t be hard to adjust because for the past year we’ve been adjusting so much, so we are practically used to it at this point,” she said. “It will benefit our grades and help us to catch up and better prepare for the MCAS.”
Based on how students feel about the Governor’s statement on being back in school full time, I’ve been able to conclude several things.
First of all, I think that being back in school full time is something that most people are excited about, but I also understand the nervousness that surrounds this idea. Of course, with COVID, there are endless possibilities and changes that can occur within the snap of a finger, but it is safe to say that sooner or later we are going to have to face this and adjust accordingly.
What are your thoughts on bringing back a full in-school schedule back for the end of this school year? Do you think students will be ready to make an adjustment like this within such a short amount of time, or do you think it’s worth waiting to go back to full time school?
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