The halls in Buffalo Island Central are more full than they previously were. Many students are coming back to campus after  being virtual all school year in 2020-2021. Some students hadn’t stepped on the BIC campus since March of 2020, due to the district being shut down over the Covid-19 pandemic. One eighth grade student, Conner Bane, was enrolled in virtual school for an entire academic year.
“Being on-site had me worried at first,” stated Bane, who is still trying to adjust to the new school and academic changes in his life. Conner said that it’s been easier to adjust because on-site learning is easier to keep track of.
Another student, Sophomore Leo Thompson, echoed Conner in his feelings. Thompson says that being on-site is a lot easier because he is less distracted, whereas at home he felt as if he didn’t have to do work, due to the distractions around him. “It felt like a really long summer break”, the sophomore said.
Although virtual education is no longer an option at Buffalo Island Central, many of the ideas and teaching styles have remained the same after teaching virtual for an entire year. Teachers are still incorporating Google Classroom in their lesson plan. The school is still implementing social distancing and the regular cleaning before class changes. Many of these changes were seen as a good thing, and have become a welcome change for in-person teaching.
While many were worried about coming back to campus after such a big break, they have made adjustments with coming back to campus and finally coming back on campus. Now, with students welcoming new and old modifications to learning and instruction, education at BIC can continue to thrive despite the challenges that all students faced last year.