Student views of COVID-19

This is the final article in a four part series detailing how WISD is handling COVID-19. Previous articles gave thew views of the administration, principals and teachers. This article will focus on the students perspective of what it is like in the classroom.

Most students at Wimberley ISD are now back in the classroom with many more filing in over the next month or so.

Regular face-to-face students of Danforth Junior High and Wimberley High School were asked and gave their opinions also on how they see the situation on a day-to-day basis. No kidding, schools are not back to normal.

Drinking fountains are closed and each individual has a water bottle. There are no lockers, hallways are one-way and there is no hanging out. Lunch is eaten outside or at an assigned socially distanced table. Teachers and students are in facemasks. The list goes on.

For everyone, this is totally new and unlike anything that might be considered normal.

From a student’s point of view, the measures taken are being followed. Students are wearing masks, tables are spread out in the classrooms, teachers are wearing masks or shields, students are online following along.

“Everything that you could possibly do is being done by the school system,” said Elise Brown, a WHS junior. Although feeling uneasy, like all of us, about the current situation. “The majority of students are following the rules… Everyone who is at the school is willing to go to school (and follow the rules),” she said.

“They are when they are being watched,” senior Tommy Garver said about mask wearing. “Everyone has the decision to wear them or not according to their beliefs, to an extent, once school is out…personally I would hate to be responsible for someone else’s death.”

Tommy Garver believes face-to-face education is really the best way as opposed to online. Even though teachers are working with students who are live in class online, he still sees potential issues. “If you are not in person, you are indirectly being disregarded, not having the teacher’s attention. There are many names (on the screen during online lessons) and you have to wait to talk. It becomes a big mess.” Garver continued.

“I think the students have collaborated well enough to inform others of their questions and concerns, but as for others that I know, they have to extensively reach the teacher via email or by requesting a live call, in order to have their questions answered.”

When it comes to the Danforth Junior High, rules are being followed, for the most part. The hardest part is something that was not quite expected. The new format has completely ditched paper. The pandemic has caused most lessons and homework to be turned in on a Google document. It is saved, “in the cloud, whether you are face-to-face or online. (I am) a non-paper student,” Danforth student Billy Brown said.

The only times he feels that masks use is unnecessary is during P.E. because it is mostly running. But when running up and down the bleachers, the kids are not six feet apart, which concerns him.

But there have been other changes that have eased his mind a bit. For example, having the students in pods or small groups makes it easier to track the disease, as pointed out by Dan forth student Cody Stoever. “I feel there’s a good system in place. There’s always someone around to remind you.”

But of course there are always those few students who don’t follow th rules, as with any other group of people.

“There’s those who don’t follow rules…but most kids are doing a good job. There’s about four or five percent. But sometimes you forget,” Stoever said.

Students for the most part appreciate their front-line teachers’ labors.

“They sanitize everything. The teachers know what to do to keep us safe. They want us to be there, and they want to keep us safe as possible.” Their extra work and responsibilities do not go unnoticed by the students.

At both middle and high schools, efforts are noticed on a daily level. Students see their teachers spraying things down between classes, wearing shields or masks and reminding students to use hand sanitizer, with their number one concern the safety of the students.

Even for those on campus, it makes for a very different atmosphere than before. But, that seems to be what life is right now for most people – different.

Understanding what the teachers are going through is hard to fathom, but the district has been keeping up with new edicts and rules. Asynchronous learning was largely dropped at October 26 WISD Board meeting. Teachers will also receive a $500 bonus, contingent on remaining with the district through the school year.

Dealing with the pandemic is new to everyone, but adapting is what we have always have done. In just fifty years the educational system has gone from number 2 pencils and Big Chief tablets, to Chromebooks and paperless documents, something seen only in science fiction at that time.

Change, and dealing with it, is not new. It has already begun to the educational system, as well as to our daily lives. Wimberley ISD is following the state rules in trying to keep children the safest that they can, when they attend school no matter what the circumstances might be.