Students are constantly adapting, especially when it comes to technology. From Facebook to TikTok, students have been changing the sites they frequently use to keep up with all of the latest trends for years. Through all of this change, they have been unknowingly sharpening their technological skills. When adding social media to all of the different video games, streaming services, and music platforms students use, it is safe to say that this generation is incredibly tech-savvy. When online learning started last March though, it proved to pose a unique new set of problems that required students to make some changes.

At first, many online learning problems consisted of technical difficulties. Technical problems were especially prevalent with programs like Zoom, which most students had little to no experience with. However, that wasn’t the only issue with learning online. Many students also had a hard time paying attention to their classes. As sophomore Nathan Baszuro puts it, “When you have a question, being online makes it so much harder to ask. It can also be harder to concentrate.” The lack of actual human contact is also a struggle for most students. Senior Ashley Johnson stated that “It’s tough going online for a week without being able to interact with teachers and friends.”

Even though learning online in March gave students a little taste of what this year would be like, the longer class times have thrown yet another curveball at CFHS students. So far, the class times have made some students become bored and impatient. The fact that teachers are instructing in-class students at the same time as distance learners can also create problems. Teagan Strecker, another Cannon Falls sophomore, felt that “Distance learners can’t always participate as well as in-class learners. Also, cramming two days of work into an hour and a half can sometimes be too much at one time.” This isn’t to say that distance learning is all bad, though.

Only having four classes a day has helped many students with the size of their nightly workloads, and without lockers, only having to carry four classes worth of materials is a definite advantage to the new schedule. Not to mention, some classes, especially art classes, are greatly benefited by the longer blocks because students only have to clean up all of their materials once in one long class instead of twice in two shorter class periods. When students have to take a test, they usually have substantially more time to take it as well. In addition, they are given more freedom to work at their own pace even if there are no tests to be taken. As for distance learning, it helps some students to get that extra hour of sleep in the mornings because they don’t have to catch the bus early to get to school.

Overall, the new schedule has brought many changes to Cannon Falls Schools. Luckily, students are quickly learning to adapt, whether it be working harder to organize homework and check Schoology, or just sleeping in to prepare for a long week of online learning.