By Michelle Wong and Ivan Suen

In 2020, more than a third of the last academic year was mandated to be completed at home, leaving many students, parents and teachers, devastated, disorientated, and dejected, with many describing it as the "worst school year ever.” Students were obligated to attend online lectures from home; until the coronavirus cases significantly decreased in mid-May, and students were allowed back on the school campus, under strict social distancing guidelines. 

However, at the start of August, the third wave of coronavirus in Hong Kong had once again caused restaurants, public facilities and schools to shut down. The Education Bureau (EDB) announced that face-to-face teaching at school would not be allowed; however, kindergartens and international schools were welcome to kick start the new school year with online learning.

Esha Bijani, a student at Renaissance College, was quite disappointed to find out that the new school year was starting online, since "going back to school signified that things would get back to normal, and starting a new school year online meant things would stay this way for an extended period of time," making it extremely disheartening for her to comprehend. 

Renaissance College made an effort to improve the experience in the new academic year. Many surveys had been sent out to enquire and take in students' feedback about the online learning period at the end of the previous school year, which opened many ways for students to be supported. 

Three weeks in with online learning, Yin To Wong, another student from Renaissance College, expressed his opinion on virtual learning through a Zoom interview. Wong praised the school for doing a good job in organizing the classes for online learning, “The one hour rule has been very helpful for me, I have been able to rest my eyes after each class.” 

The one hour rule is a new regulation set by the school for online learning periods. Students only need to attend sixty minutes of the lesson instead of the full eighty minutes of a standard double period, to ensure that students are able to take a small break before attending their next online session. 

When asked about how they had been feeling during the online learning period, Bijani expressed that students are given less support and a decreased amount of time to complete assessments in class, leading her to "stay up late to complete the assessments," which has affected her physical and mental well-being. 

However, Wong says otherwise. “Workload is pretty much the same. Y11 online school is very similar to Year 10 face-to-face school, the workload has not significantly increased or decreased. However, there are less interactive activities as everything is online.”

Though Wong has not been significantly stressed during this time period, he mentioned that sitting all day long in front of a laptop screen had impacted his physical health.

“I feel sore, especially from the science homework because I had to do a lot as my time management is not that good. I always leave things to the very last moment,” admitted the 14-year-old as he appeared in front of the camera, visibly tired. 

Online learning has been tough on many students, making it harder to maintain relationships with others. Wong shared that he has been keeping in touch with his friends using Discord, a social media platform, or Whatsapp to communicate with his friends.

“It is definitely harder to maintain a relationship as we are not able to do activities that we mainly do. I used to play basketball with my friends a lot, and we aren’t able to do that now,” Wong mentioned.

On a positive note, many friendships were strengthened. "I have talked more to my friends during this period, about school but also our personal lives,'' Bijani added. 

Wong disclosed some “interesting” encounters that he had during home learning. He mentioned that sometimes his parents would forget that he was attending class, and would come in without notice beforehand. These small incidents have caused Wong to now lock his door whenever a class is in progress.

Bijani also had a similar experience with one of her family members. During a class, her brother started knocking on the thin walls that she was leaning against, causing her to be startled and momentarily distracted from what the teacher was talking about.

Though students typically do not enjoy online learning as much as in-person learning and dread online classes with their cameras on, students are flexible enough to find ways to make the most of the situation and try to get through this challenging period. 

As the third wave of coronavirus cases in Hong Kong has significantly decreased in the past month, the EDB has deliberated that the earliest date students are allowed back on campus is September 23rd. Perhaps, this is a significant hint that things may be back to normal in no time and we will be able to resume our normal and coronavirus-free lives.