With schools eliminating the majority of virtual classes, teachers see an influx of students skipping classes.
During the 2020-2021 school year, students have the option to attend virtual classes through zoom. This set a trend for students to stay home and attend classes from their room. Head counselor, Shayla Rodriguez-Bell believes this could explain why students now miss classes.
“Some students need to transition from last year to this year. It’s a jump, and I understand that. But skipping classes will not be tolerated,” Rodriguez-Bell said. “Students need to understand that their classes need them to be present. Kids cannot learn or develop as a student if they fail to show up to class.”
Earlier classes in the day see more tardies and absences. This could be a result of the early (7:20 am) start to the day. AP and Dual Credit English teacher Laura Braun sees the issue first hand. Her classroom varies in size each day, as certain students follow a trend of skipping class or arriving late.
“This problem is definitely prevalent, especially earlier in the school year. I’ve seen a dramatic increase in tardies, but they seem to be getting better. So that’s something to be excited about. I’m sure as we get further into the school year we will see much fewer students skipping classes,” Braun said.
Absences are not taken into account for exemptions this school year. Senior Jake Seibel, sees this as a possible motivating factor for the issues.
“The number of people in my classes is different each day. I think students don’t care about absences as much because of exemptions,” Seibel said. “Exemptions aren’t affected by the number of absences so people might look at that and think it’s okay to skip.”
This school year is a start to the district’s plan to return to normal. Students will need to transition and prepare for new learning environments.
“Students need to ready themselves for this school year and the years to come. Fortunately, the pandemic is getting a lot better, so we are able to start returning to normal,” Rodgriguez-Bell said. “ I’m really excited to move past the pandemic and towards more success as a school.”