As WA has adopted the new learning plan for this school year, the concern arises on whether or not it’s working and will work for the majority of students. The coronavirus has affected almost all parts of life, this doesn’t exclude schooling. With the new learning system giving students the choice between the hybrid or remote model, students will be learning differently.

As all of the recent changes in how school occurs continue, students have developed varying opinions on how this year’s education model is affecting them and their learning process.

This school year is not only different in comparison to last March and the stay at home period, but also to last year, pre-COVID-19.

Some students find that March’s stay-at-home remote learning model had some benefits compared to today’s RLA and Hybrid model. One such student is sophomore Dan Noonan, who’s currently part of the hybrid model.

“During the stay at home period in March, I felt like I had more flexibility on how I could finish my work and interact with both my peers and teachers,” Noonan said.

With a new school year just beginning, freshmen are making a large transition, especially now that they have to adjust to a new schooling model as well. Despite this big change, many freshmen are making the best of it. Freshman Ankit Panda, who’s part of the hybrid model, is one such student.

“Compared to the beginning of the pandemic in March, school has been a lot better. With the introduction of the hybrid model in WPS, getting acclimated to the environment in school slowly has been a great experience,” Panda said.

Freshman Sammy Waterhouse, also doing the hybrid model, agrees but does find there are some downsides to this model.

“It’s definitely not as fun as how school was originally, but it’s not terrible. Yes, I’ll have a hard time making new friends, but at least it’s easier to get used to the new school,” Waterhouse said.

While many hybrid students are getting acclimated, the transition for remote students may look different. Senior Mateo Berman-Sample, currently part of the remote model weighs in.

“My experience has been overall a positive one as opposed to the spring. This year’s learning is a major step down from what school used to be but that’s a given. I loved school and I was sad to see it go… It’s not so much the material that’s confusing, but the schedule.” Berman- Sample said.

Other remote students seem to understand how remote learning can be tricky or confusing, including sophomore  Lilian Whitehead.

“I have a visual learning style, so not being in person to view the board or whatever my teacher is demonstrating 100%, clearly has been an adjustment, especially when attempting to split my chrome book screen with the resources my teacher shared online to simulate an in-person experience, which can cause my computer to lag somewhat.” Said Whitehead.

Though there are many small issues with both models, overall WA students find that the current model is one of the best we can do. This is confirmed by junior Shreya Krishnan who’s currently in RLA, when asked if anything could be done differently.

“I think what they’re doing now seems to be working well,” Krishnan said.

Though students are currently working within the hybrid or RLA schooling some students do feel things could be done differently. One such student is a senior currently in hybrid, Athena Lewin.

“Organizationally, the assignments are difficult. I struggle to uncover what is due and what is just an announcement. Overall, I think WA needs to find a more cohesive way of informing students of assignments and of class meeting times. Especially for the online students, it’s difficult to remember the specific times when to go to class.” Lewin said.

Despite the various opinions regarding the new remote and hybrid learning, WPS has created a way for all students to learn one way or another during this time of uncertainty.

“Overall I feel like it’s a step in the right direction but it will never beat the real deal,” senior Mateo Berman-Sample said.