The Panther Pride

As I began my eighteenth (!) year here at Walker Mill, I am struck both by what is missing this year, but also, what we DO have, compared with online learning last year.

It is true that we must all wear those hated masks, and limit close interaction with others ("stay 6-ft apart!") in an effort to limit the spread of Covid. As such, the situation is not ideal, compared to a normal year. However.......

Teachers can look out into their classes to see actual faces, to gauge whether students are understanding their assignments, instead of seeing student names because some chose not to have their cameras on. These same teachers are forging relationships with their classes in a way impossible one year ago. Yes, this does mean that everyone's morning commute is longer, but school is about in-your-face learning experiences, from the fist-bump when first entering class, to the laughter of a shared joke. Students have been remarkably disciplined about wearing their masks, and on behalf of all the teachers here, I thank you.

Mr. Lloyd

Online learning was not as easy as one would think. Even though it has its pros and cons,If I had to rate it 1 thru 10 I would rate it like a 6/10 because of distractions, time management, procrastination, and wifi issues. Distractions because i would have my phone, game console, and TV all beside me and it was easier for me to get distracted. Time management can go both ways as a pro and as a con. Time management would be a con because it would cause me to oversleep or sleep through a class. Wifi is completely the worst; I say this because i would be late to class and my teacher would think that i am lying and the whole time i am not. That is the worst because nobody wants or likes to be accused of ¨lying¨ when they aren't. Procrastination because online learning made me let some of my assignments pile up and let me say ¨oh no worries i'll do them later¨ and most likely never get back to them.

Also, there was NO physical interaction! In my opinion, I'd rather have physical interaction because it helps me understand what people are teaching. Distance learning did not help with my social Interactions. Sometimes I can't even have a conversation without trying to avoid something. Online learning has also made me a little anti social because i have been in a house 24/7 for a good 18 months. Those are the main cons of distance learning.Although I was able to get good grades, get honor roll, and pass, it was challenging.

Online learning was not the worst though.It gave me an opportunity to get things completed in time such as schoolwork. That is where time management can be a positive because I was able to have enough time to do everything that was needed to be done. With in-school learning , work was due at a certain time, whereas with online learning I had until 11:59 pm to turn things in such as classwork, assessments, and homework. Online learning even gave me days off every Wednesday to catch up on any work,extended learning,and to just relax your mind.Those Wednesdays were well needed.If there was something that i didn't get i would be able to go in on a zoom and ask my teacher for extra help or email them. Online learning also helped me with getting fast replies from my teachers because they were on their computers all day long also! Those were the pros of distance learning.

Daniel George

COVID-19 is a worldwide virus that has seriously impacted us. It was so serious that PGCPS had to close schools for a week at first. After a week, our government said that we need to do school online. It was a little difficult because we never have done school online for a long period of time. We started online school in either March or April and it stopped at the end of the school year.

After this, we students and teachers thought that online school would be over but it continued for the next school year. This time both students and teachers were a little prepared because we already had a little experience. The difference this time is that we had to do online learning for the whole school year. This made it even more difficult for both teachers and students. However, during online learning, there were both pros and cons for it. Some of the pros for online learning is that you can focus on schoolwork since there is barely anyone to talk to you. This means that there are less distractions for you to pay attention and to do classwork. Another pro for online learning is that you can gain more sleep. Since students weren’t doing in-person learning, then students can wake up 10-20 minutes before school starts. For WMMS, I had to wake up at 7:00 a.m. When online learning was mandatory, I woke up around 9:00 a.m, which is 30 minutes before school started. As a result, I was able to get 2 extra hours of sleep. Lastly, students can be more organized with their assignments since everything is online.

On the other hand, we were looking at computer screens for long periods of time. Looking at computer screens for a long period of time can lead to blurry vision and brain damage. Another con for online learning is the lack of social interaction. Students are used to talking to their friends during classes but because we are online, they can barely talk with them. A con for online learning for teachers is that some of them already have their plans for their students organized. Since they have to teach online, they have to try to adapt and fit their plans electronically. This made things a lot difficult and put more stress on teachers.

A few months after the COVID-19 vaccine came out, hybrid learning started for some schools. This meant that students could go back to in-school classes for half of the week and stay online for the other half. This added more pros and cons for both students and teachers. The new pros that were added for both students and teachers is that they weren’t looking at computer screens as much as they did during online classes. Another pro is that both students and teachers can get more cardio in their body by leaving the house more often than at the beginning of the school year. On the other hand, since the COVID-19 vaccine had just come out, people were still skeptical about it. The vaccine doesn’t make citizens immune to the virus, it just decreases the chance of them getting it. Furthermore, it is still possible to catch COVID-19. Students that are doing hybrid are still risking their lives from catching the virus. In conclusion, there were ups and downs towards online school learning and hybrid. Today, most people have the COVID-19 vaccine and are back in school. This means that it is less likely for students and teachers to catch the virus now.

Zion Thomas

i am on the edge of seventeen.

my hair is washed,

my teeth are brushed,

my room is clean,

i am on the edge of seventeen.

and i am happy.

right?

wait, no,

let’s go back over this.

my hair is washed,

my teeth are brushed,

my room is clean.

i am on the edge of seventeen.

i am happy.

i am not.

my hair isn’t washed.

my teeth aren’t brushed.

my room isn’t clean.

i am on the edge of seventeen.

and i am happy.

i am on the edge of seventeen,

and my life is perfect.

i am on the edge of seventeen,

and i find the good in every day.

i am on the edge of seventeen,

and i finally feel okay.

i am on the edge of seventeen,

yet i am still lying to myself.

i am on the edge of seventeen, and,

i can’t seem to stop wondering,

what do you do with the rest of a life you didn’t expect to be alive for?

Zoey F.

(Part 1)

October 2020, Online school, 7th Grade year

“Beep! Beep! Beep!” my alarm blares, telling me to get up for school. I check the time, 8:45 am. I’m gonna be late for school! I thought. I run to the bathroom as fast as I can, quickly performing my morning routine. There’s time to brush my teeth and wash my face, but my moisturizing method will have to be put on hold today. I sprint back to my room, struggling to take off my striped pajama onesie and put on my uniform. The buttons on my burgundy shirt seem to slow me down almost every morning. I fumble with the top one for a minute before I successfully get it inside. Finally. I get my khaki pants, hopping and twisting in order to slide them on. I zip and buckle them up, almost ready to go downstairs. I grab my black purse, inserting my shiny phone along with 10 bucks for emergencies. Now I’m speeding down the stairs, almost tripping over the air. I snatch a Smore’s flavored Pop Tart from the pantry and pour a glass of milk. I scarf them both down in the blink of an eye. As soon as I throw away the foil from my breakfast, I grab my white and gold Adidas and slide them on my feet. But, I feel like I’m forgetting something. I pull my phone out of my purse and check the time again, 9:03 am. There’s also two messages. One from my friend, Demetrius. It says: “Gooooooood Morning Walker Mill”, he’s been annoying me all night. The other is from one of my best friends, Zion. “Good morning :) Are you gonna be able to join the Zoom for Mr. Mathers? You have an appointment today around then right?” Wait. That’s right, Zoom. I deeply sigh with relief and embarrassment, amazed with how I forgot about the pandemic already. I’ve only been in 7th grade for a month, but so far so good. I text Zion back, saying: “Yea, I’ll be there. I leave around the end of class and I can take my device in the car. Besides, I’d only be missing lunch by the time I get to the office.” That’s something I love about distance learning, you can go anywhere and do lots of things while hardly missing out on your classes. And now, I don’t have to travel as much, considering we learn at home. I guess I miss seeing my friends in person, but I know it’s for the best. I take my shoes off and go back upstairs to my room so I can get ready for my first class.

Sienna Dillard