Personally, I was happy to be on the pro-side of returning to in-person learning.  I have never been a big fan of remote learning.   For me traveling to and from school breaks up the monotony of everyday living.   It provides me with an opportunity to make new friends.   I enjoy those few minutes before class starts, which give you the opportunity to strike up random conversation with the person next to you.   Every semester I always end up meeting someone who needs help with classwork, and we usually end up creating a study group which meets before or after class to go over any points which need further clarification, or helping a classmate by proofreading their work, exchanging ideas and opinions to help take the project we’re working on to the next level.  I miss all that and I can’t wait to go back.

It was great to have an educator like Mrs. Buckley present during the debate.  It gave us an opportunity to hear an educator’s point of view and hear first-hand how remote learning has affected her as an educator.  It only reaffirmed my desire to go back to in-person learning.   One of the points my team members made is the fact that vaccines are more readily available in more places and without appointment.  This means we can take the necessary measures to make returning to in-person learning as safe as possible.   As was pointed out by Talisha, not everyone learns at the same pace.  Some people are more self-disciplined and work well independently.  Some have a better support system.  Perhaps, a parent or a sibling who can supplement the remote learning experience.  Others do not.  There is also the fact that prolonged school closures are likely to have a negative impact on children’s learning which may put them behind academically and may take years to get them back on track.

Remote learning has been challenging for me as an adult so I can only imagine how much more challenging it must be for kids in elementary, intermediate, and high school levels.  Even more so for children who have learning and emotional impairments.  Schools provide kids with more than just the tools to learn reading, writing and math.  They are a place where children can learn social and emotional skills, get physical activity,  access to medical assistance and coping resources.   Children dealing with toxic and abusive home environments lose the ability to escape these situations.   As pointed out by Professor Buckler, it’s difficult to determine whether there is a clinical neglect situation when you’re looking at these children via a camera.  When children are in school, educators can pull them aside, ask questions, build trust so that eventually, that child may feel comfortable enough to let them know that something is wrong.

I understand that there are risks with in-person learning and I don’t take those lightly.  However, many people have been infected with Covid-19 while working from home and participating in remote learning.  Most of us go out to the supermarket, laundromats, hairdressers, barbers, department stores, etc.   The risk of exposure isn’t eliminated just because we’re doing remote learning.  You can be infected with the virus anywhere.    During the holidays, my entire family was exposed and infected with Covid-19 because my sister got Covid.  She doesn’t know where or how she was infected.  She was working from home.  The only places she was visiting were the supermarket and the laundromat.  We can only assume either one of those places was where she became infected.   Interestingly enough, everyone, my parents, my brother, his wife, my sister’s husband, her daughter, they all tested positive and developed manageable symptoms.  Yet, I tested negative and had no symptoms.

I traveled to South America during Thanksgiving.  I had surgery during the pandemic.  I visited restaurants and family members during the pandemic.  I also tested regularly and always came back negative.   What I have made sure to do is to limit the circle of people that I visit.  I always wear a mask.  I carry hand sanitizer, and anti-bacterial wipes in my handbag always and use them regularly.  So far that’s worked for me.

As was repeatedly stated by Professor Buckley and fellow classmates, there is no right or wrong answer.   In the end, it’s a personal choice.  You can choose to do everything you need to do to minimize the risk of infection and return to in-person learning or continue to do so remotely.  Since the vaccine is not yet available for children under 16, and it is not expected to become available for them until next year, I suspect that schools will continue to offer remote and/or hybrid learning options to accommodate those of us who prefer to wait a little longer before returning to in-person learning.