While COVID-19 has become a global threat, many students and teachers have been trapped in their homes. Teachers and school administration have had to become creative when coming up with new ways to teach their students. Students have had to adapt to the new learning environment. Although times may be tough at the moment, students and teachers are getting through it.

One of the biggest platforms that teachers and students have used is Zoom. Zoom was designed to be a conferencing service, and many school districts have discovered that it works very well for class and tutoring sessions. Not only public school districts have used Zoom’s capabilities to their advantage. Many private schools, colleges, and universities are using Zoom so students can still get the education that they need. I personally have used Zoom, however, it isn’t the main source that I learn from.

The platform my school district uses the most is Google Classroom. It was already used before quarantine, but it has now become the main distributor of knowledge for our district. Schoolwork can be posted, and the students just have to complete their work before it is due. This makes it easy for the teachers to give assignments and allows students to work at their own pace.

Addison Archbold, an eighth grader at Dobie Junior High, believes that her school district is doing a good job at giving out homework. “I like how homework is self paced and allows me to make my own schedule for myself,” said Archbold.

One of the main reasons that I like online schooling is that I am able to work at my own pace. Instead of doing my school work at a specific time that I’m given, I can complete my school work at my own pace. This allows me to do a lot of work one day, or none on another day if I’m not feeling like I want to work that day.

Mara Hill, an eighth grader at Dobie, believes that online school allows her to work more efficiently. “I feel like it’s easier to get my work done quickly and efficiently, because I can work at my own pace,” said Hill.

How to work efficiently during online school

• Schedule your work. 

An important part of getting through the week with your assignments done is knowing when you want to work on, complete, and turn in assignments. The most important part of this is making a schedule that works for you.

• Staying in routine.

Once you establish a routine that works well for you during online school, you need to make sure to stick to it. If you work on creating a routine that flows for you, make it a part of your mindset that you complete your assignments when you originally planned on completing them.

• Finding and submitting assignments.

Every Monday, all of your teachers will post assignments that are due by the following Sunday. You can see what assignments you need to do by clicking the “Classwork” icon at the top of the classroom page. That will show you all assignments you have and have not submitted for the class. Make sure to click “submit” on all assignments. If you don’t, your teachers will not see that you completed the assignment.

• Getting help from teachers.

Online school has made school completely different for the remainder of the year, so it’s important to make sure that you understand everything. You can email teachers to ask any questions you have. All teachers also hold online zoom meetings, which take place twice a week for each class. The times will be different for each class, and each teacher will post their zoom schedule on Google Classroom.