Back to School Dilemma

Gustavo Morales

CASES ON THE RISE-With the rise of coronavirus cases it is important to take into account the safety of the students. “With what is happening, going back could be very risky” Matthew Barajas, a junior said.

Would you want to go back to school in the next semester?

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A question that has been on the minds of almost everyone: Is school going to reopen next semester? With the COVID cases spiking , is going back to school even realistic?

One of the plans coming into the new school year was to allow students to return back to school in the second semester. This sounds like a great thing; it would have made high school feel a bit more normal. However, something came up recently that might end up negatively affecting this plan.

As of a few weeks ago, the amount of COVID cases began to rise as shown here (graphs) and is expected to spike during the winter season. Akiko Iwasaki, a immunologist at Yale who focuses on the COVID virus said, “I worry about the pandemic getting worse this winter because of the climate.” This is a huge concern and it’s scary to think about the pandemic possibly getting worse.

The possibility of a huge COVID spike is very likely to happen and it should definitely not be overlooked. If it’s true, are schools really going to allow students to re-enter at the beginning of next semester? Are students going to want to go back in these circumstances?  There are a lot of questions with what is currently happening and what is projected to happen.

“I am concerned about the risk of us going back to school and possibly bringing COVID back home” Adan Barrera, a senior, said. This is one of the biggest concerns if schools were to reopen, catching the virus and bringing it back home to those who are susceptible to its effects like elders  and younger children. 

“If it was up to me, I’d continue with online learning but everybody is different and some might have reasons as to why they would like to go back,” Barrera said. This is one of the controversial topics that everyone in the educational system has to think about and face. Everyone’s opinion in this situation matters and it should be taken into consideration.

( I would add a poll at the end of the story asking the reader whether or not they would like to go back to school)