29 COVID 19: Night School Struggles
Anonymous
I was in my hometown of Brampton, Ontario, during the whole COVID-19 pandemic. I was in grade 10 at the time of the first break, so I was around 15 or 16. I never saw anything outside of Canada unless it was online because my parents never traveled outside of it (mostly because my mom was a permanent resident and couldn’t really leave the country). I recall the first full lockdown and the extension of March break, so it was a fascinating experience due to the fact that people were still adjusting and new information was coming out about the virus every single day.
There was a lot of chatter about a new virus prior to March break, and I recall that many people were anxious when we first went into March break, only to have it prolonged and then extended again until a complete lockdown was implemented. I think lockdown lasted until grade 12, and it was challenging to return to the traditional classroom. My math classes in particular made online learning more challenging for me because I preferred to learn in person and observe how equations were solved and ask questions, rather than have a teacher who appeared to be having trouble giving lectures online. This wasn’t their fault, however – no one knew how to do online classes properly at the time and everyone was learning and adjusting to the new challenges. The majority of my “school day” consisted of me having trouble waking up in class, frequently opening my laptop, and simply dozing off during the lecture during the first period. Another issue I had was that, when I went in person, I would get up at precisely 7:30 AM and be prepared to leave for school by 8 AM. Because we didn’t meet in person, it was difficult for me to organize my calendar and maintain a healthy sleep routine. When I woke up properly, I would do all of my weekend chores, like cooking and cleaning, while my class played in the background. At the time, it seemed rather strange to be preparing breakfast while spending all of my time in front of a screen. Additionally, my school had a lack of English teachers and had to substitute from other high schools – so I had classes all the way until 8PM due to night school. It felt odd, considering I’ve never taken night school before and I’d do all of my weekend things with the class in the background.
Regarding my experience with COVID, I believe stigma is a significant aspect that I recall.
People were very anxious at the time, and new material was being released all the time. Everyone was afraid to leave the house because of the deaths and the others who were ill and were confined to hospitals. They also frequently blamed others for the virus and other problems. I recall reading online that COVID was a “Chinese sickness,” and I was really perplexed by the idea that people were making racist jokes about Asians because the virus was spreading to everywhere and that their jokes were generally offensive, all at the cost of other people. In addition, Asian people were stigmatized for a long time (and even now) because of that one viral video that surfaced during the peak of COVID, which led people to blame them for the virus and its origin: “eating bats.” Stigma around viruses is a constant; people need to find someone to blame because it makes them feel better and gives them the right to be upset, even if that anger isn’t justified. It results from a lack of knowledge, propagates unfair treatment of groups, and establishes a foundation for discrimination. This was the case during COVID, when many were racist and discriminatory against Asians for their “part in causing COVID.” Despite many people just being scared of the illness and overall exacerbated by the fear, what they said and did was wrong. The stigmatization of Asians and COVID was a major part in the initial outbreak, especially since the information coming out at the time was slowed and often misleading like the video that had gone viral.
There wasn’t much to do during COVID because you couldn’t leave the house. Since there was really nothing else to do during this time, I believe that many people became “chronically online.” It seems like people are a lot meaner now in-person and that there is a lack of mutual respect and overall understanding, as people were so mean online it leaked into their genuine personalities. Online, hiding behind a screen, it’s easy to be rude and poke fun at other people. Because it was so common and so easy for so many years, I think people have genuinely shifted into becoming rude and condescending individuals – many of these people lacking care for others and simply themselves. Due to the pandemic’s disruption of lives, communities, and businesses worldwide, people were extremely irate and perplexed, which frequently led them to say hurtful things online that they would not say in person. Since there were no consequences for their words, they could simply say them repeatedly until it had a genuine and psychological impact on them. Other cultural shifts that I believe have taken place include a diminished sense of community and a greater emphasis on individuality over interpersonal relationships, which fosters a lack of empathy. The pandemic and its associated changes in lifestyle caused plenty of tensions, and individuals were bouncing off of that and trying to soothe their emotions on their own – with no one to remind them that their thoughts are sometimes ill-intentioned and can have severe impacts on other people.
