On September 30th, PYLUSD released the new schedule for hybrid learning. The district plans to return to school in October and early November, but according to teachers’, parents’, and students’ experiences, do we even need to go to school in person? 

From September 20th to the 23rd, a survey was taken by almost 10,000 parents and teachers. About 93% of PYLUSD employees claimed that remote learning qualifies as average, above average, or excellent. The same percentage of parents and guardians said the same thing.

Although the survey did not include the students themselves, Amber Han (11) has a similar opinion that is shared by many other students. She points out that “school hasn’t changed that much. Of course, talking to your teachers through a screen and being able to work on your own schedule is different, but a lot of our work was already online. Also, unlike last year when we didn’t really have a plan for online school, this year, schools were able to find other tools to make it work.”

So, if remote learning has been such a success, why are we pushing to go back so soon?

According to the parents’ responses, now that the district has offered a completely online option, the majority will not send their students back to in-person school. If online school has been successful, there is no need to risk the safety of students by rushing into a hybrid system while the pandemic is still ongoing.

The district’s plan includes having students split into two groups where one attends school in person while the other uses Zoom. For teachers, in order to keep all students on the same schedule and doing the same work, students attending in person will likely remain to have most of their work online. If there is no change, why risk safety? If there is a change, how are students still at home going to keep up?

Even if this were to make students’ and parents’ lives easier, there is no doubt that teachers will have to worry about more. Ameerah Hirji (11) adds, “teachers not only have to navigate the quirks of technology and work with the kids on Zoom, but they also have to make sure to keep the kids in class engaged.” As teachers will have both students on a Zoom call and in person, it’s hard to imagine things not getting very overwhelming since they have to interact with two-thirds of their students online and one-third in person.

It is clear that the district has put in the time and effort to make a hybrid model work. However, we might not need to go back so soon as it may even make things harder. With elementary and middle schools going back this month, we will see how this will work out and what changes might be made in response.