As COVID drags on for the third year, thoughts about the pandemic today are different than they were initially. As we’ve experienced, it’s greatly changed the course of school these past years. After the almost-2-year transition to online learning, students struggled to overcome the obstacles that came with distance learning, especially with staying productive. Teachers faced problems as well, as adapting their classrooms to a virtual environment was a challenge. 

Although we have finally returned to a somewhat normal school year (aside from various restrictions), the recent surge of the Omicron variant after Winter Break sent everyone back to distance learning temporarily. Unfortunately, the future of this school year remains uncertain, and students wonder whether we will stay in person for the remainder of the year.

In an interview with The Wolf, Tualatin High seniors Ben Augee and Sam Roach expressed their thoughts on the pandemic.

“In addition to other everyday steps to prevent COVID-19, physical or social distancing is one of the best tools we have to avoid being exposed to this virus and slow its spread,” Augee said. “However, having to physically distance yourself from someone you love—like friends, family, coworkers, or your worship community—can be hard. It may also cause change in plans—for instance, having to do virtual job interviews, dates or campus tours. Young adults may also struggle adapting to new social routines—from choosing to skip in-person gatherings to consistently wearing masks in public. It is important to support young adults in taking personal responsibility to protect themselves and their loved ones.”

Roach reflected on COVID’s positive and negative effects.

“It’s interesting. I’m pretty tired of going in and out of school, but I understand the need to stop the spread,” he said. “I’d say I’m getting a little exhausted of it for sure, though I’m still learning and getting older like anyone else. I don’t know if it’s making me mature faster or slower. The main thing I’ve missed is the social aspect, whether that’s being able to spend time with my non-immediate family, friends or classmates to collaborate with. I do think I’ve had plenty of time to work on myself. I probably would’ve had that time anyways.”

Tualatin High teachers Shem Malone and Christopher Murray stated their opinions on this topic, as well.

“I really dislike online teaching – I kind of live for the personal interaction part of teaching, and with online teaching and with cameras generally turned off, I get tired of prying interaction out of students,” Murray stated.
“That said, there are a few things that actually work just as well, or better.  I like that there are built in polls …. I also came up with quite a few ideas last year like quizzes for video flips and online labs that are good enough that now I am just going to use them in my classroom from now on.  It also made me beef up my support videos.  In the Spring of 2020, I posted more than 400 videos, and last year came up with new assessments and support material for all of my classes.

“Now – the dragging on part – yeah – that part is not so cool,” Murray continued.  “I have personally taken to going on walks every school day which helps me de-stress.”  

On the other hand, Malone takes a more neutral stance on the subject.

“To be completely honest, I’m exhausted most of the time when I think about the pandemic,” he said. “I think about all the lives that have been lost and all the chaos it has caused over the last few years. And yet, I’m not entirely pessimistic. The fact that I can reasonably run a class online has allowed me to think about what’s possible and that there’s always room for improvement. Maybe, after learning about new ways in which to conduct class, we can think of innovative methods and techniques and make education even more comprehensive and effective for all students.” 

As for what the future holds, Murray sees more variants in coming months and years as the world struggles to get all people vaccinated. 

“I think people in general are pretty ready for this whole thing to be done.  Many of those people are unvaccinated.  I bet they got four doses of polio vaccine when they were little, but they are intransigent about getting a vaccine – they just simply refuse because it has become political,” he said. “These people are variant factories – they are a large part of the reason that we have gotten, and will continue to get, these variants.  Omicron is perhaps less lethal than Delta and the others whose names we have forgotten, but the next variant – not to paint too dark a picture – could be far more deadly.  Since these viruses are contagious before you show symptoms, there is little or no evolutionary selective pressure for them to become less or more lethal.  Their lethality is likely just random right now, and it is probable that as long as we have tens of millions of Americans who refuse the vaccine, we are going to continue to get variants.”