It all started with an epidemic virus called coronavirus that began in China in early December of 2019 but did not affect Hawaii. But things took a turn in March 2020; everyone traveled everywhere without knowing if they had the virus or not. It has spread throughout the states, and Oahu is the most visited out of the Hawaiian Islands and the largest population, it got worse for us. 

We had our spring break, going away only a week off school, knowing the virus was going around. We didn’t think much of it before, spending our break regularly with friends and family. But we got hit quite hard, and the number of cases climbed tremendously, leading to a shutdown. Students could not return to school because it was now said to be a pandemic. We had to stay indoors away from others, canceled our fourth quarter, and started up a new year with a new learning way. 

Everything has changed; students haven’t been in school for months because of the pandemic escalating quickly. New ways of learning have been created, teachers and students adapting to online schooling. Students were bummed out about how we had ended last school year because of all the activities we had sacrificed and how seniors had to leave. No one was happy about it, it was difficult for everyone, changes are never easy, and some students are still struggling to learn to this day. But the students’ safety is always a priority and is what matters the most in these conditions. 

Some significant changes that we had to do this quarter are we are doing full distance learning. Some have Accelus, which is 100% distance, and some have a hybrid, which is face to face and distance learning combined. But since the number of cases of COVID-19 has increased, we are doing virtual schooling until further notice. Every student has computer access and has daily classes with teachers through video chat and assignments on mostly google classrooms. 

As a student government member, we are trying to find ways to create some activities for students so that we can normalize the school year as much as possible. It can be a little tricky because everyone participates through the internet, and sometimes it may not work out due to connection failures. But so far, we are planning some things out and are hoping for the best possible outcomes. 

As a student who is doing virtual learning, I feel that learning this way isn’t difficult if you pay attention and do your work. You may fall back a little, but it isn’t impossible to catch up. Some students like to slack because they are too comfortable at home, but a way to fix that is to get out of bed during class and sit at a table and chair and focus. With only three classes this semester, there is a lot of time to do your work, and it is all online, which makes it easier to keep track of. 

So the hope is we can get back to normal, but we need to make the best of this new normal until then.