On Campus vs At Home.

On+Campus+vs+At+Home.

A couple of weeks ago, SIS opened its doors for the primary and middle school students transferring from online learning back to on-campus learning. The Upper school remains at home still, since all  Swedish upper high schools are closed. There have been changes made to the campus learning schedules for each grade. Students now have shorter school days, and some of the middle schoolers have changed buildings as well. The QQ  interviewed some 8th and 9th grade students to find out how it felt coming back to the SIS campus and the new setup. -There were definitely mixed emotions about the decision.

What are your thoughts on transferring back to on-campus school from online classes? Do you agree or disagree with the decision? Why?

“I think it’s a very rushed move and unnecessary especially with everyone finally having settled in after a few weeks and the school almost being over, only a month left. I feel that there aren’t a lot of positives going back. I disagree with the decision.”

“I agree with the decision of going back to school, however, I think they should do it more smoothly since now they are just rushing into everything. I think they should give us less work since this transition can be hard for some people. But I do agree because lots of Swedish schools are still open and they still go to school and I don’t think it was so necessary that we had online school, to begin with.”

“I think it’s good. I’m excited to see my friends. I agree with this decision.”

Distance learning has made me addicted to my phone and increased my screen time by hours and hours.

How has online learning been for you? Have you enjoyed it? Why/why not?

“It’s been fine, other than some instances when I’ve had some concentration issues, I think I’ve got along with the change well. I have enjoyed it since I have been able to focus better and I have been free to do whatever I want during breaks and get to eat lunch at home.”

“I have enjoyed it because we had much more freedom as I could eat at home and do all my work at home. But something that I didn’t like was that we got homework and had to work even after school and that means that we’re always on our laptops and that was exhausting.

“I have enjoyed online learning. It was a new way of learning, which was pretty interesting and I got to sleep in longer which was nice.”

If any, what benefits do you see with the distance learning model as opposed to on-campus learning?

“Because we are not interacting during lessons and distracting each other, I feel that I am able to focus on my own work better. And also because the responsibility is on the students, you have to focus even more in distance learning and pay attention to what the teacher says because you can’t have the interactions with your teacher face-to-face.”

“For me a benefit was waking up later which was nice to get the rest that you needed. There is also much more freedom which I think we should also have in our on-campus learning so it’s not as strict about where you are all the time.”

“I would think distance learning is probably cheaper for the school since the students learn from home.”

How do you feel about only some grades coming back to school?

“I don’t really mind. I mean, getting too many students back to school would just cause chaos and a lot of people would probably not follow the social distancing recommendations. It’s good because it isn’t as crowded so to bring back only some grades is a good first step.”

“I think that it’s good because that makes it a slow process and it doesn’t make everyone stressed. There are fewer people in the buildings which makes it easier to handle the situation with the coronavirus and prevent spreading.”

“I don’t mind.”

What do you think about the new setup with shorter lessons and days in school?

“I understand why they are doing it since they want to cut down on the hours by our screens and in class. Many people are still home, I have a few in my class that are at home, and for them it’s the same as it’s been the last weeks with online learning.”

“It’s a little bit messy and unorganised. It’s difficult to plan ahead since the tests we were going to have this week are being moved to later dates. I do think that it is good that we have half days with normal classes and the rest of the day to just do homework because that makes us not have to do homework after school as well.”

“I get to focus more on my own work and I can put more effort and time into my summatives.”

Do you feel that you have gained anything from the experience of distance learning (for example self-discipline/motivation)?

“I have definitely improved my self-discipline. I have learned to really pay attention in class more to make it easier for me.”

“No, I think it has actually worsened it. Before this I did procrastinate a lot but it wasn’t this bad. Distance learning has made me addicted to my phone and increased my screen time by hours and hours. So I don’t think it really has helped me with self-discipline but it has helped with rest hours because you can sleep longer.”

“No, I don’t think I have gained anything from distance learning.”

Thank you to Carl S. Felicia J. and Gabriel L. for giving your thoughts on the situation. As we approach the end of term and this school year, we hope that the current situation with the virus improves and that the rest of us students can return again!