With the 2020-2021 school year, many students got to experience online learning for the first time.  While there were many students who struggled or found it hard to adjust, online learning benefitted some students and even made them want to continue with it for this school year.  Now that the first quarter has finished, online students have gotten a good idea of what the rest of the semester will feel like, and how different it will be from last year.

Junior Matthew Martinez shares why he decided to continue with online school and the benefits of it.  

“My parents thought it would be best for me because COVID was progressively getting worse and cases were rising,” Martinez said.  “I like waking up a little later than usual and not having to get ready to go out.”

Now that the district has had two and a half semesters of trial and error, the online learning program is a lot more organized, which will make the experience more pleasant for students and staff.  Classes are also only filled with online students, which is different from the hybrid version of online learning last semester.  Junior Joanna Garcia is one of the many students who prefers this school year’s online classes over last year. 

“Last year and my freshman year, I had trouble keeping up with my classes and it affected my grades poorly,” Garcia said.  “I like that this year the classes are smaller, and my teachers are already used to teaching online, which makes it easier for all of us.”

Although there are still a lot of students doing online school, quite a few have chosen to switch to in person not long after the first quarter started.  Junior Taleen Alkhateeb shares her experience with online learning and why she chose to come back in person.

“I chose to come back in person because I wasn’t learning as much online and I often found it hard to concentrate through a screen,” Alkhateeb said. “The classes were often confusing if I couldn’t figure out something on my laptop.”

Although online students must stay at home for the school day, they can still participate in any after school activities and events.  The only difference is the learning experience, and for some, online school was the best option.  The school creating this option allows students to continue succeeding academically now that they have found a learning environment that helps them.