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ERS5 • News PESHPRINTS.COMPUZZLEDPANTHERSBy Samantha HeathIf the students new to theschool attend the campus inthe 2nd semester after doingonline, how will they know howto get to their classes?New students can schedule a timewith Mr. King to visit and tour thecampus. Students are also providedmaps and teachers are available toassist when needed inlocating classrooms.What will the first week ofschool look like when we returnfrom winter break?Jan. 5 will be asychronous for allstudents. Jan 6 - 8 students will followthe cohort rotations (A- Thursday,B- Wednesday and Friday),but all students will meet synchronouslyonline everyday regardlessof cohort. Moving forward throughthe rest of the semester, Mondayswill be asycnchronous and Tuesday-Friday will be synchronous foreveryone.How are yearbook and newspaperoperating this year withmany staying at home? Howare they getting theirwork done?For the newspaper team, onlinearticles have stayed the same sincethey’re accessed digitally. Printissues have seen the biggest changein the way they are distributed.Now, instead of creating a physicalcopy to hand out to the students,print articles are published online.Yearbook also has limited accessand with fewer students on campus,it is a struggle to obtain their usualimpromptu photoshoots and interviews.This, along with interviewsthat now have to be conductedthrough online meetings, are thedifferences that both teams havehad to adapt to this year.MOVING FORWARDDistrict plans going into second semesterBy Haris Kalam and Mohammed ModiFor the second semester, theschool will increase the number ofsynchronous days from two to four.These changes are being implementedin efforts to increase student success.Cohorts A and B will still physicallyattend campus two days a week, but allstudents will connect virtually whennot on campus.Mr. King delivered an email Dec.3 indicating the changes and alsoincluded additional expectations forremote learning. Requirements statethat every student must have theircameras on during live calls and loginat the start of every class, Tuesday-Friday. Monday continues to be anasynchronous day for teachers to workon lessons, participate in team collaboration,and for students to attendtutorials or catch up with work.Technical difficulties such as wificonnectivity, Chromebook malfunctionsand communication problemswere among the challenges in the firstsemester.“At the beginning of the schoolyear my Chromebook was very slowand my live classes would lag veryoften due to wifi issues,” senior AffanKhan said.If students are facing any sortof issues, they should communicatethat with their teachers. The goal is toincrease communication while alsobeing mindful of the limitations ofonline learning.“Personally, I think increasingthe number of synchronous class dayswill harm students more than it willhelp them,” senior Hassan Saeed said.“Most students are used to the currentschedule and having to cope withthe new plans will make it tough forstudents to adjust.”While this change will result inanother transition to adapt to newlearning models, the hope is that itwill allow teachers to cover the curriculumat a more normal pace whilealso increasing communication withstudents.“Personally, I feel like this couldhelp many students who struggle withlearning on their own,” Khan said.“Adding two more synchronous dayswould benefit them greatly.”A lot of the struggles centeredaround the abnormality of the learningschedule. Getting used to the two-daysynchronous learning sessions was abig departure from the regular learningenvironment students were accustomedto. This was one of the drivingforces for the district to shift to fourdaysynchronous weeks.“We believe that the change tofour days of synchronous instructionwill more strongly correlate to the lookand feel of a normal school year,” AssociatePrincipal for Curriculum andInstruction Sheela Daniels said.Another consideration was themental health for students who mightbe struggling with the limited amountof socialization they experience duringthe pandemic.“Student social-emotionalwell-being should be enhanced by thisreturn to a more familiar school experience,”Daniels said.The school continually evaluatesthe current model and works tofind solutions that allow all to feelmore successful given the challenges ofschool during a pandemic.“I have learned that perseverancein the midst of a difficult situationcan be attained and must be done asa team with collaboration, detailedplanning and compassion,” sub-schoolprincipal Brandon Johnson said.
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