Last school year was far from normal. Students, as well as teachers, lived with constant uncertainty, wondering whether they would be attending school in-person or online. Students watched COVID-19 cases carefully, which would decide their fate. A constant change of environment was hard on a lot of students and it became very difficult to learn for many. Moving forward into this year, students and teachers must re-adjust and figure out a way to get back on track.  

“I think because of the difficult circumstances last year it might be harder to remember what was taught to us last year, which might put us behind, a little bit. We should just keep going forward from that,” senior Sara Mengel said. 

Teachers also understand that students may be falling behind this year because they were unable to learn all they needed to last year. 

“Teachers have been pretty lenient with work. I haven’t gotten much homework, so I think most teachers are understanding,” senior Madison Rhoades said. 

Teachers have been working to catch students up to where they need to be. 

 “Each level ended last year a little behind where I normally finish. For example, my Spanish 2 classes usually end the year with a unit on chores. We didn’t get to that, so we’re starting Spanish 3 with that unit this year,” Spanish teacher Ruthanne Gudzan said. 

Of course students are looking to have a stable learning environment this year. 

“I’m actually excited to go back into the building because I fell behind last year. I work a lot better in an in-person environment compared to online learning and I’m excited to actually get back into it,” junior Connor Tavern said. 

Keeping COVID-19 cases low will be key to continuing a regular school year. Another worry students have is that they will struggle to study for and pass tests. 

“Studying is going to be really hard. Getting the motivation to actually do it, since you know, we haven’t really had to study that much last year,” Rhoades said.  

  It’s no secret that students could have used outside resources to help them with testing while online. Not to mention, many teachers refrained from giving students tests, or gave open note tests, for this very reason.

“I think the most difficult time will be during tests. A lot of students would cheat on their tests, so remembering information may be hard,” Rhoades said. 

Lastly, students have to wake up and attend school in person everyday. For a lot of students, this is the routine they have been longing for throughout the entirety of last year. 

“I’m doing fine with going back to school. Sure there is a monotony to the schedule, but that beats all the days blurring together like they did when we were stuck at home. The routine keeps me somewhat sane so for it to break up like it did last year really messed with my mental health,” Tavern said. 

Altogether, most students are seeing huge improvements in their attitudes towards learning now that they are in person. Adjusting into the normal routine will take time, but students are working to get back into the right mindset. 

“Students might have to put in a little extra work or put in some extra study time to get refreshed, but it will be worth it in the long run. Nothing in life that is worth having or worth achieving ever comes easily,” Gudzan said.