Rose basketball highlights
Issue 1
September 27th, 2019
Rose returns to hybrid format second semester
WED. | 1-06-20 | NEWS
SAT. | 10-10-20 | NEWS
With the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, Rose has had to make many changes to ensure the safety of students and facility. After being forced to switch completely virtual at the end of last school year, school has had to continuously adapt and change.
“We are constantly having to adjust how we deliver content and educate the students,” school counselor Martha Dudley said. “Last year was a big surprise that no one could have planned for, but we adapted and learned as we went.”
The biggest change for next semester is a predicted bigger population of students on campus than virtual students, who are also being offered a chance to return to school and participate in hybrid learning.
“I think we will have more students because I don’t think online has been as successful as people hoped it would be,” Dudley said. “The rigor of classes is definitely still there, but we are trying to make it so it is not so overwhelming.”
There have been many changes this year to adapt to the virus and these will continue into the second semester. The hybrid learning environment will continue unless Governor Roy Cooper decides otherwise. Students will still be required to wear masks, social distance and have their temperatures checked
Photo taken by Emma Hastings
everyday. Refresh will remain cancelled, lunch will still be eaten during third period in classrooms and the shorter school day lasting from 9 a.m. to 2:55 p.m. will continue.
“We have had to change just about everything to accommodate the guidelines,” Dudley said.
Before and after school, janitors clean all classrooms, and sanitize door knobs throughout the day. In between classes, teachers must
Teachers have had to learn how to instruct their students through a virtual setting. Hybrid learning is something that has never been done before and required training and practice. Math teacher Nicole Leary says that she is getting better at online instruction, but it is difficult to make connections with students and find ways to motivate her virtual students to not wait till the last minute to complete assignments. Leary hopes that better knowledge of the schedule will help her next semester students not wait till the last minute, and plans to bring what is due up more often.
She also feels that with zoom, her students are less likely to ask questions because it is more obvious and she can not individually help them during class. Shy students are more likely to ask a question when Leary can come over and silently walk them through the problem, but when on Zoom, she has to do it infront of everyone. She feels that more people may be confused then let on. When face-to-face and not wearing masks, Leary learned to read faces and know when students are confused.
“My biggest challenge is not being able to see everybody's face because I can see in people’s faces if they do not understand and I can ask if they are lost, but if I can’t see their face then I just don’t know” Leary said.
This year, Pitt County Schools implemented virtual Mondays, which Leary says has helped her adjust to hybrid learning. She spends the day meeting with her students one-on-one, planning lessons for the week, and grading her students work. The Board of Education extended virtual Mondays till March 29, 2021 two weeks ago, which benefit both students and staff.
During this year, problems occured that no one could have seen coming, but Rose continues to adapt to these changes. As the second semester approaches, students and staff are continuing to adapt and progress these unforeseen circumstances.
