The Mirror | Van Nuys High School | March 2021 | Volume 107 |Issue 3

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12 | MARCH 2021 | | C O V E R S T O R Y | theMIRROR INFOGRAPHIC | THE MIRROR How an LAUSD hybrid-model classroom might look: In the classroom: Students are taught with a lesson delivered by the teacher over Zoom in a quiet space with a stable internet connection provided through the school WiFi. Teacher teaches: The teacher delivers their lesson online to all students via Zoom, even if students are in the classroom. There will be little to no individual interaction with students in the classroom. SOURCE | LAUSD At home: On alternating days, students continue to learn online through a lesson delivered over Zoom and complete independent assignments from home. Back to the BASICS: Continued from p.11 safety upon returning to school. So while students will be in the classroom with their advisory teacher, all direct teaching will be prohibited except for the advisory period itself. Instead, students will attend their online classes with provided Chromebooks and noise-canceling headphones. Teachers will also be teaching their classes through their laptops with their masks on at all times. Students will not actively participate in P.E. or other physical activity classes, like music or dance in the hybrid model to avoid chaos within the classroom. They will complete alternate assignments instead. “It will probably need some getting used to,” Principal Gardea said. The primary purpose of reopening schools is for students to have a stable internet connection and a quiet space in which they can concentrate on participating in all their classes. “Coming to school will allow them [students] to use the internet at school and make it so they don’t drop from class and can use both their video and audio at the same time,” Principal Gardea said. Students whose Advisory teacher has not yet returned will be grouped with a teacher who is on campus. Breakfast will be served in a Grab ’n Go bag from 8:30 a.m. to 9:00 a.m. For lunch, students will be dismissed by building to pick up food from the cafeteria and will eat it outside while maintaining social distance. Along with ensuring classrooms follow social distancing guidelines of a six-feet between chairs to limit the spread of covid-19, the school will also be adding designated routes for student entrance and exits. Chairs, tables, doorknobs, light switches, handrails and other hightouch surfaces will be sanitized daily along with classroom materials and supplies and restroom surfaces and sink handles. Air conditioning filters will be changed monthly for proper air circulation. All drinking fountains will be closed and may not be used. If a student on campus tests positive for covid-19, everyone within the same cohort and building will be notified immediately and asked to quarantine. Additionally, everyone on campus will be notified. Contact tracing through the Daily Pass app will ensure everyone in contact with the individual is notified and quarantined. Los Angeles County officials announced a timeline for students under 18 to be vaccinated on March 17. All students ages 16 and over will become qualified for the covid-19 vaccine starting May 1. This may open the possibility of hybrid learning including direct teaching although LAUSD has yet to release a statement in regards to the matter. As of March 19, of the 1375 surveys that have been returned, only 17 percent of students have chosen the hybrid-learning model. While, so far, a majority of parents are choosing to continue the online-only learning model, schools will still reopen. Although there is no set date for reopening, there is still the possibility that schools will reopen even later than April based on changes to levels of the virus in coming weeks,. OPINION I’m not risking my health just to attend online school in the classroom FATIAH LAWAL Guest columnist What seemingly started as an extended spring break turned into a year-long debacle. But now there seems to be light at the end of the tunnel. Except, that light doesn’t shine as bright as I’d hope. Upon hearing our school was going to adopt a hybrid model, I was excited. I’d finally get the chance to be back in the classroom and receive in-person learning. Soon after I realized that the hybrid model is still virtual online learning but at school. Students are going to be locked in one stuffy classroom all day just to be sitting in front of the same laptop screens with headphones in their ears. Teachers will lose the luxury of teaching from the comfort of their own homes and instead will have to wear a mask the entire time all while ‘‘ trying to engage students virtually. Teachers and students will all be in the same room but they will still be distant, just as before. As someone who has the privilege of a relatively stable internet connection and a quiet workspace, there is no point in me returning when I can be learning from home instead. I also don’t want to lose the opportunity to dance which I wouldn’t be able to do with the hybrid model because students in the classroom will not participate in P.E. or other physical activities. I’m also concerned about the safety of teachers. While they aren’t required to return until they receive a vaccine, they are definitely feeling the pressure from the district. It seems absurd for teachers to put their unvaccinated family members at risk to not even directly teach in the classroom. While I do not see the purpose of returning to school without direct teaching or social interaction, I understand why some other students are choosing to return. Some homes are too noisy to focus in, or the internet connection is unstable or the household is simply toxic. I hope that schools will reopen soon but in a way that is worth risking my wellbeing for: receiving direct teaching from all of my teachers. It seems absurd for teachers to put their unvaccinated family members at risk to not even directly teach in the classroom. Returning to the classroom: voices How do you feel about reopening? ‘‘Student “It is not for me but I think it’s a good idea for students who don’t have the space to do virtual learning at home.” — Junior Fatiah Lawal “There’s no point if we’re doing the same thing we do at home at school.” — Junior Anyia Holts “I feel a bit surprised that they opened so soon considering the fact that although cases are going down, the number of cases are still high. If kids have to go to school and Zoom there, it is basically the same thing as now except in a different location and it just proves we aren’t ready to be open.” — Junior Isabella Rivera “I’m glad that school is reopening. I think it’s beneficial for the students who are struggling at home because of a toxic household or because it’s genuinely hard to concentrate when you have easy access to your devices.” — Senior Nicole Nazaire What would it take for you to return to in-person learning if you are not going back in April? “A better hybrid model that allows you to actually go to class instead of just online school on campus.” — Senior Tristan Timpers “I would need the number of COVID cases to go down in order to go back and feel safer. Teaching would have to be the way it was before COVID, not Zooming at school.” — Junior Isabella Rivera “I would only return if there was no hybrid learning; if everything was in person.” — Senior Gasia Excel “Once everyone gets vaccinated.” — Senior Maahir Shaheed 17% HYBRID (Plan to return) 83% ONLINE ONLY (Continue online) INFOGRAPHIC | THE MIRROR Choices, choices, choices Students share whether they will return to campus with the hybrid-learning model in late April or continue the online-only learning model. SOURCE | VAN NUYS HIGH SCHOOL SURVEY OF 1,375 PARENTS
theMIRROR | A R T S & E N T E R T A I N M E N T | | MARCH 2021 |13 COURTESY | JONATHAN PELAYO TikTok trends: Album cover challenge Here’s proof that any picture can be an album cover. Of all the current trends on TikTok, the coolest by far is the album cover trend. Remember the one where there’s a video and suddenly it pauses with a grainy filter, “parental advisory warning” in the corner, and a mashup of Kendrick Lamar’s “HiiiPower” and Kanye West’s “Devil In A Dress” in the background? Yeah, that one. Here are some submitted by students: • ISABELA DIAZ Retrospect Toby Ryu (12th) “It’s a photo that I took in DTLA. I used the app PicsArt to edit it. I used a vintage filter that made it look like it was taken on an old digital camera. I also added specific elements like the tear, tape, and paint strokes to create the outer-worldly feeling I was going for.” PRODUCING with passion WRITING AND REMIXES Student musician Pandi talks about accomplishments, inspirations and the future of his music career. By TERRENCE LAZO THE MIRROR STAFF While most music students learn to hone their craft with the guidance of teachers, to a few, it comes naturally. Jonathan Pelayo is one of those musical talents. He paints an ethereal atmosphere with his dreamy, bubbly and poppy beats, while maintaining his distinct signature style of ambiance through his productions. Under the name of Pandi, Pelayo produces trap beats with elements of pop and electronic. Currently a senior in the Performing Arts Magnet, Pelayo’s music is known to thousands of listeners. As a self-taught musician, Pandi navigates through different genres in a natural and experienced manner. His music dabbles with lo-fi bedroom pop while others have trap beats as their foundation. In addition, he has been establishing his presence in the hyperpop wave, a genre characterized by an exaggerated take on pop music. Pandi’s SoundCloud includes a collection titled “Samples and Stuff Collection,” which includes sounds he’s curated or sampled to sell and share among other producers. “So many producers have used it [sounds from the collection] or bought it and I hear my sounds in regular songs I would listen to realizing it’s from my sample pack,” he said, specifically naming “JOI” by Bari who used a few of his original drum samples. From a style based on remixing other songs, many producers of the genre, like Pandi, have learned to adjust and work around complicated property terms. One of his most popular songs is comically named “i have 2 copyright strikes.” But aside from these copyright restrictions, Pandi has found many ways to create music while exploring new territories. In a process of sampling others’ music he’s able to add his own personal style. “I choose things [samples] by my ears — whatever I think sounds good — but there are areas where I can find samples I know I’ll love,” Pelayo said. “Things like jazz, soul, funk, I know I can do something with. As with vocals and acapellas, whatever song is popular at the time or a song I have just been wanting to remix, I can find the vocals online and do what I do.” Pelayo started creating music five years ago in the eighth grade. That same year he began to release his work on SoundCloud, an online music platform. Pelayo attended James Madison Middle School without taking any music classes. He started posting as a necessity of artistic growth, with the intentions of improving upon tracking progress and observing feedback. Pandi cites his family as his biggest supporters, claiming they made a huge influence on his music taste, leading him into music as a career choice. He was inspired by electronic artists, referencing Skrillex as one of his favorites growing up. “A fond memory of mine was posting a remix to Childish Gambino and it gained a little traction with a few thousand plays the same day as my culmination of middle school,” Pelayo said. His stage name Pandi originated from his life of gaming. Influenced by his Playstation username which included “panda,” he was given the nickname “Pandi.” “I don’t know why I ran with it but that’s how I got to where I am today with the name.” With over 14,600 SoundCloud followers and approximately 5,000 monthly Spotify listeners, Pandi has accomplished a great deal, especially considering his age. One of his greatest accomplishments has been collaborating with Soulection Radio, a weekly segment on Beats 1 on Apple Music. “Soulection has been showing love for the past two years after finding a remix of mine, putting me on the radio a couple of times before recently contacting me to feature on a radio show of theirs that premiered on Apple Music 1,” Pelayo said. “It was fun making the mix and showing off my work.” As Pandi has built his platform, he has been able to reach out and collaborate with more artists, making friends along the way. “I think seeing how my music career came full circle is always a great accomplishment,” he said. “For example, before I started making music I would listen to artists like Meltycanon, J.Robb and others, and after the fact I’ve been making music they have been showing love and listening and it couldn’t make me happier. I’m even good friends with a few.” With Pandi moving from producer to producer/vocalist, he has plans of solidifying himself with this new artistic rebrand. He hopes to collaborate with more artists like Smino and Jericho as he gains more fans and collaborates with bigger rappers and producers. For a young artist like Pandi, it is exciting to see the direction he’s going toward. Pandi’s music is mostly available through SoundCloud. Some of his other releases are also available on Apple Music and Spotify under the name Pandi. Reminiscing Naomi Lee (11th) “This photo was taken in an old church building a couple years ago. I really like capturing moments where the subject is backlit so that it creates silhouette in the photo. I turned it into an album cover by cropping the original photo to a square and then adjusting the exposure, contrast, and other things like that. I imported it into the app PicsArt and added the “parental advisory” sticker to the bottom right of the photo.” Stuck In Da Mud Son Nguyen (12th) “[The] picture was taken on my friend’s street. I edited the photo on VSCO and photoshopped the explicit icon to make it a cover.” Effervescent Inhibition Tristan Timpers (12th) “The photo was taken near Lake Arrowhead, in the mountains. Unfortunately the car is not mine, just a very cool looking Cadillac. In order to make it an album cover I cropped it to a square. In addition, I darkened the image and added grain.”
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The Mirror | Van Nuys High School | March 2021 | Volume 107 |Issue 3

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