Although the 2020-2021 school year has already begun, students were able to have their first day of school again. The Placentia-Yorba Linda Unified School District announced that a transition to hybrid learning will take place on November 9th where students are assigned to cohorts when returning to in-person school or choosing to stay remote. Although the transition seemed to be well planned and executed, some students have different opinions.

Students who chose to follow the hybrid model were split up into two cohorts that designate what days of the week they will have in-person school. While a group of students is in the classroom with the teacher, the rest of the class is attending class from online means like before the transition. Some common concerns involved whether or not students will have equal attention from the teacher, if teachers will assign more work than usual, and if safety guidelines will be followed.

As a student who is staying completely remote, Aaric Duong (11) says “I really don’t like the new schedule at all and would definitely go back to the original block-schedule. Now, I feel like every class has to catch up and we have so much more work compared to both the block-schedule and regular schedule before COVID-19.” Joyce Lin (11) also adds that “[it] is increasing my workload and really stressing me out since I have so much homework from all of the classes.” Personally, I agree and also feel as if the hybrid model hurts both students at home and in person. Teachers are split between two groups and often have to pay more or less attention to one. 

Students like Tejas Niroola (11) have even taken action to create a petition to increase awareness. He shares “I admire everything that the staff and administration have done to adapt to these unprecedented times on behalf student welfare. It was not clear to me what level of student input was considered in the development of the alternative schedules. In discussion with peers, I realized that many students shared similar feelings, and out of curiosity we chose to start an online petition to gauge student sentiment. If the petition increases administration understanding of the student mindset, it ultimately benefits all parties.”

According to data collected about how many cases in each school have been confirmed, safety guidelines have not been able to stop the spread of the virus completely. Fifteen students and twenty staff members have been reported for having cases of COVID-19 (pylusd.org). This brings up the question of why schools are still using the hybrid model even when there are cases. 

Another concern to consider is how teachers are doing in the hybrid setting. Of course, managing two separate groups must be challenging, but as we see more cases among staff members than students despite there being fewer of them, it should not be okay for teachers to have to be at school every day.

Now, Orange County has dropped back to the purple tier which has the most restrictions. However, schools have already been opened and will remain open until announced otherwise. This leaves teachers who are required to be on campus for in-person students to still be present despite increasing cases.

How do you feel about the new hybrid schedule?

• I don't like it at all.
• I like the new schedule!

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