Progress reports are sent out so that students have the feedback necessary to reflect on the year so far and improve for the future. As students find them helpful for these reasons, Scarsdale High School could benefit too from a progress report of their own. 

Due to COVID-19, students can opt out of the current hybrid schedule and learn completely virtually. As this is still very new to Scarsdale the question at hand is how the school has been doing with its online only students and who better to answer this question than the students themselves. 

General Performance: See Comments

On a scale from 1-10, “I would probably say around and eight,” said sophomore class president David Diao ’23. To understand this rate we will dive into the good and the bad of a virtual school experience, starting with the good.  

“Teachers do a pretty good job at finding a good angle to put [the computer] at and checking in to make sure everything is alright… From the teachers point I think they are doing just a really phenomenal job at trying to incorporate online students into curriculums and making sure that all students in the classroom and those zooming into the classroom are being accounted for,” Diao stated. Diao also revealed that he is receiving a work load equivalent to those using the hybrid schedule, and most importantly, that he is getting roughly an equal education to in person students. 

Nonetheless, the online experience has its flaws. “Sometimes tech issues with audio interfere with my ability to hear my fellow students,” Diao disclosed. Online students are also concerned in retrospect to their health. “Staying at the computer all day long is draining, emotionally and physically. My eyes hurt, I’m getting headaches, and that’s definitely really difficult,” explained Riley Iasiello ’23. Still, Iasiello gave the school a six/seven as she agrees with Diao that Scarsdales teachers have exceptionally risen to the occasion. 

Generally speaking, the school has been successful in carrying out online school, but nonetheless there is still some room for improvement. “There could definitely be a better system for extra help because it’s hard only being able to meet with teachers on Wednesdays. For example, let’s say I have a test on Tuesday. I would benefit greatly from a class period on Monday being dedicated to extra help the same way Wednesdays are,” Parker Mauro ’24 expressed. It is also crucial that SHS makes technological advancements to ensure the best learning environment for each and every student. 

“There is something lost when communicating with someone through a screen… it’s just different… There is something nice about actually being there in front of someone,” said Diao. It’s important to keep this in mind as the year proceeds but overall it has been a pleasure to attend SHS’s virtual class.