High School 1327’s incoming freshmen spent their summer anxiously wondering whether or not school would be in-person or online in the fall. To their surprise, it was announced that school would be computer-based until it was safe to loosen the COVID-19 pandemic precautions. Many members of the class of 2024 yearn for the high school experience that the classes before them once had. 

Several students feel that the daily Zoom interactions they exchange with each other are awkward, especially when factors like black screens and muted microphones are involved.

“I only knew about 15 people going into high school. It’s hard to make new friends over Zoom because you don’t get the same person-to-person connection that you would in real life,” freshman Annie Pon said. 

Making friends at a new school can be difficult on its own. Trying to meet people through a screen is exponentially harder. Students don’t even have the opportunity to spark a conversation with the person sitting next to them in class. In addition to being surrounded by people they don’t know, freshmen may feel more intimidated and less inclined to ask for help in class. 

“I’m a little more afraid to ask a question during class because I don’t know the teacher as well,” freshman Alex Martikan said.

Students also crave the individual attention they used to receive from teachers when they circulated the classroom and allowed time for students to privately ask questions. This gave students who tend to be more introverted a sense of security, because they knew there would be a time to ask for help that wasn’t in front of dozens of peers. Now, many have lost that sense of security.

“Usually there’s a point in class where the teacher would come up to you personally and you could talk to them about whatever you’re having trouble with,” Pon said. 

Pon and Martikan both said that the feeling of excitement would override their nervousness once they have their first day of in-person learning. They said that if they had the opportunity to go back to school tomorrow, they would. 

As the school year progresses, many HS 1327 freshmen await the day when they can walk onto campus, laugh with their newly found friends, and raise their hand high in class – all without having to give it a second thought.