After an entire year of virtual learning, it has been quite the adjustment for many BCA students to return to school in-person. There have been a number of changes to the school that returning juniors and seniors had to quickly get used to, while many sophomores and all of the incoming freshmen had never set foot in the school before this month. But no matter what grade you are in, everyone had to experience online school last year and there are bound to be quite a few mixed feelings about virtual learning compared to in-person classes.

When reviewing data from an anonymous survey that was sent out to the school, it seems that most students have adjusted to in-person school quite well. Being asked to rate their adjustment on a scale of 1-10, with 1 being a hard adjustment and 10 being a fairly easy one, over half of the students ranked theirs as being either a 7 or 8. 

Those who decided to explain their responses further stated that their transition was made easier by the fact that they were able to see their friends in real life, rather than on a computer screen, and reported having an easier time making new ones. Most students also seemed to agree that it is much easier to learn and take in information when they have a teacher right in front of them explaining the topic. Those who were in the school building during BCA’s brief period of hybrid learning additionally stated that they appreciated not having to navigate any confusing one-way hallways anymore. 

However, there are two sides to every story, and while most students said that they had adjusted fairly easily, there were also various factors that made their transition more difficult. 

Ironically enough, one of the most common complaints was not about school itself, but rather about how students get to school: buses. After an entire year of getting a few more precious hours of sleep during virtual school, many students have been in for quite a literal rude awakening when it comes to catching the bus in the morning. approximately 85.9% of people agree that they miss these extra hours of sleep. 

Kimberley Ni, a freshman in ATCS, said she definitely agrees with this sentiment: “The roughest part for me has been waking up early. During virtual school, I would wake up at 7:40 and just log on to Zoom. Now I wake up at 6:40 which is an entire hour less and I’m really feeling the effects of it.” 

“Back during virtual school, we had plenty of time,” Kimberly continued. “Now that we are in-person, a lot of our time is taken up by in-person schooling and the commute to school.” 

Along with the long commute, many students have quickly become overwhelmed by the long school day. Between waking up in the morning and arriving home after school, students have nearly eight hours of school to get through. When learning was remote, there were various breaks throughout the day during which everyone could take some time to do work, eat, or simply relax. Now that everyone is back in school, these have been replaced with study halls that many people feel are limiting in terms of freedom.

However, she also agreed that there is still a silver lining to these new changes, adding, “We have all had to learn how to manage our time better.”

This seems to be a common theme with many of these new adjustments. While there have been many added challenges that came with the transition from remote learning, many students have found benefits in how they have overcome them. 

For example, many people reported that they have found themselves being more productive while in-person, stating that study halls have played a big role in helping them get work done. As a result, many students said that they have had an easier time separating work and life, something that just was not possible during virtual learning when your bedroom and classroom were the same place. 

While school has only started a month ago, it seems that most BCA students prefer in-person school over virtual learning, despite all of the added challenges that come with it. This just goes to show how important social interaction is when it comes to learning and how much more effective it is in real life than on a computer screen.