By Nagham Masarweh, Staff Writer
This year has proven to be anything but ordinary, and that is especially true for freshmen’s first high school experiences. The repetitive cycle of Zoom calls, homework, and sleep has taken away all expectations freshmen had going into Mills. Our parents would traditionally drive us to our first day of high school while giving us last-minute advice, but COVID-19 has made it so that we have to steer away from previous habits. It’s strange going to class in your jammies all cozied up in your bed.
Before high school, I had a vision of what freshman year was going to look like: I was prepared to go to school every day, experience new things, get out of my comfort zone, and make new friends. Freshman year was supposed to be unforgettable, but instead, it ended up repetitive and anti-climactic. Freshmen are now spending their time sitting in bed and staring at a screen all day. You wake up, open your computer, go to your mandatory Zoom calls, do homework, and sleep. This cycle repeats itself 5 days a week.
The transition to high school has been especially difficult and unmotivating. Last spring at Taylor, I attended 1 or 2 short Zoom calls (which oftentimes were compulsory) and had a few basic assignments a day. But high school was completely different. One of the most memorable days in life is the first day of school, but mine was not nearly as glamorous as I thought it would be.
On the first day, I got to start off high school in another language: Spanish. I was super nervous and anxious because I did not know how it would go and this class consists of mostly sophomores and juniors. At the same time, I was really excited for the first day of school to finally see my friends and who else was in my classes. I logged into Canvas, clicked on the link, but Zoom malfunctioned and wouldn’t let me into the call. When it finally worked, ten minutes had already gone through the class. I was about to turn my camera on so that the teacher knew what I looked like, but I noticed that only a quarter of the class had it on, so I began overthinking about what others would think if I had my camera on. I ended up not turning it on nor speaking all class because I was too nervous. The rest of the day was similar; I felt anxious about going into each class, turning my camera on, and speaking.
Since I’m more used to the schedule and flow of high school, I started finding certain moments really enjoyable, while others were stressful and overloaded with thoughts. Lana Levison (9) says, “I like how in highschool, everyone is so inclusive, staff and students are alike. It is more exciting than middle school with a lot more opportunities to pursue your interests.” Jeremiah Metry (9) thinks, “it’s very monotonous and you don’t get to see your friends now since COVID-19. But on the other hand, I feel like it is easier to get good grades.” The transition from middle school to highschool was tough due to the amount of homework we are getting this year.
During this tough time, I’ve found good moments, allowing me to focus on myself, concentrate better, get work done, and find new hobbies and talents. Along with assignments, tests, and homework, and the stress of COVID-19, there’s a lot of pressure to have your future riding on your teenage self, and virtual classes elevate that feeling. You could say it was a big change.
At the end of the day, this pandemic has affected everything and everybody. Yes, it has caused unfortunate events but there is hope that things will go back to normal.
