We live in a world where people have to make noise to be heard. Do you think we’re being heard? Ever since we’ve been back to school, we’ve received an email informing us there is a new COVID case in school. Students took a survey I made with the question “Should students have a choice on whether to do in-person or e-learning” and all students who took the survey agreed that we should have a say. Majority of the students decided to go back to school to see friends. Going to school just to see your friends doesn’t seem reasonable to be risking your life. There’s been many deaths that have been caused by COVID-19. If we get sick, there’s a high risk we can get our family members sick too.

Students should’ve been given the choice, this decision has impacted their education. An article published by the Harvard Business Publishing states, “ Since last summer, university leaders have been busy determining when and how campuses can safely reopen. I quickly determined that giving my students a choice in how they received their education would allow them to exert greater autonomy. Not to mention, developing students’ autonomy is a critical learning goal. ” This is important because as citizens of the United States, we should have a say when making these types of decisions, we should be taken into consideration. When people with a higher rank made this decision, they weren;t thinking about children or the lives being lost. The only thing crossing their minds was money, if students don't show up then they’re losing money. The author of this article, John Drea, stated his point of view and it was very understanding. “ This all got me thinking: if students were allowed to make choices in their education relative to the pandemic, perhaps their anxiety would decline and their performance would increase. '' So Students mental health was affected with COVID-19. An example is, I didn’t have anxiety before COVID-19 and now anxiety is a daily thing that happens to me.

What assures teachers that students can stay focused in class after having e-learning for a year? The article written by John Drea agrees with my argument because higher education is unlikely to fully return to pre COVID-19 course delivery models. The article states, “ Millions of students have now experienced the intensive integration of technology into their courses, and this has likely reset their expectations for the future. ” Technology has impacted students, as we know e-learning was based on a computer. We had to use technology most of the time. We had to use a computer in order to learn, then we had to use it again to do homework. Technology became part of our daily routine and returning to school has changed our routine.

A plan should be provided to assure that students can still feel safe at school. The article written by Angela B, “What Now: Should parents and students have a choice between hybrid, in-person, or online learning?”, states : “As a believer and advocate for learning in a variety of formats, I do believe options should be offered to students and teachers across states, counties, and districts. Parents must be comfortable with their child being exposed to other children. There can be no illusions that masks will definitely be off at times and children will be exposed. ” Wearing masks has become an option and now we’re at a higher risk of being exposed to COVID-19. Many students live with grandparents and they’re at a higher risk of dying of COVID. There was a situation where parents weren’t allowing their children to return to school after winter break. Many families have lost loved ones and losing a child to COVID would be a bigger pain.

Students attendance has been affected, and schools have tried multiple ways to motivate students into showing up to school. An article written by Mila Koumpilova, “COVID surges, ‘re-entry anxiety’ hamper Chicago’s efforts to boost attendance”, states: “ At one Chicago elementary school, educators were so concerned about some students’ lackluster attendance they created a hall of fame — a bulletin board in the main hallway recognizing students who made the most gains in showing up to school. '' Students absences rised comparing before and after COVID-19. When students were able to come back to school, many decided not to return and parents didn’t agree with the decision of sending their children back to school. Based on the article written by Mila Koumpilova states, “ Students who are considered chronically absent miss 18 or more school days for the year. The increase was more pronounced for homeless students, those with disabilities, and especially Black students, for whom chronic absenteeism jumped from about 31% to 39% over those two years. ” All students matter, no matter race or their living situation. There’s been studies that show African Americans and Hispanics/Latinx have the highest absences. African Americans are minorities and are not given the attention needed to be helped in school.

In conclusion, being back in school hasn't been the same. Students' well being and attendance have been affected. There are multiple articles used as evidence stating that students' attendance is unstable. When making the decision of returning back to school, students nor parents were given a choice or a say in the decision making. There is a case per week of COVID in school, it’s not safe but the mask mandate has been lifted and we’re still going to school.

Bibliography in MLA style

Drea, John. "Online? In Person? The Power of Letting Students Choose." Harvard Business School. 2021.

B. Angela. "What Now: Should parents and students have a choice between hybrid, in-person, or online learning?." 2021.

Koumpilova, Mila. "COVID surges, ‘re-entry anxiety’ hamper Chicago’s efforts to boost attendance." 2022. https://chicago.chalkbeat.org/2022/1/31/22907016/chicago-public-schools-covid-lower-attendance-black-students