by Aine Latoja || Photo Credit: Floydalyn Nitura

New school year, new changes, new me. 

Students at PSHS-EVC are once again adjusting to a blended learning set-up that incorporates both online and face-to-face classes. In this new phase, there are a new set of challenges to accommodate—for one, the adjustment period of students in this hybrid system. 

There are two sides to this coin called blended learning. On one side, students can engage more with their teachers in face-to-face lectures. However, they have to adjust back to doing assignments at a fixed schedule instead of the ‘at your own pace’ learning style of online classes. This brings us to the other side: the online set-up seems more flexible in terms of individual progression. But the disparity between students in terms of resources during the virtual set-up, and the toll it takes on their mental health, reminds us of why the online mode of learning led to a lesser understanding of lessons. Thus, with the present learning mode, we’re kind of getting the best (and worst?) of both worlds. 

The freshies of the new school year have to adjust the most. As if adjusting to Pisay culture isn’t already complicated enough, they also have to consider a now unfamiliar set-up on top of it all. A Grade 7 student even shared that “understanding the schedule and knowing the different places na mag-accomplish ng requirements is a bit hard [understanding the schedule and knowing the different places to accomplish your requirements in is a bit hard],” but meeting more people definitely encouraged them to branch out and gain motivation for the incoming school year. 

As for the older batches, some of whom haven’t even stepped foot on campus since the pandemic hit, they, too, are just like freshies adjusting in Pisay. 

Nina Marmita, a Grade 9 student, said, “I need to adjust again. But that’s not about everything. As I have never experienced being on campus since Grade 7, I feel that this will be a fun and new experience. Even with the need to adjust once again, I am happy that I can experience the freshie moments I always dreamed of, even if it’s late.” 

Moreover, school clubs and organizations are gearing up to become more active in the coming months, so student leaders and seniors alike are also adjusting to this new set-up. With more school content and engagements in motion, students are now somewhat involved in these ventures, might it be a simple interview or a picture. 

When asked about the active mobilizations of An Pukot, the official student Filipino publication of PSHS-EVC, Editor-in-Chief Ranz Go emphasized, “Leading a publication is something new to me, but overall, I don’t find it overwhelming naman. Pukot has active and cooperative members, so I believe we can continue, and even improve, its conduct during the past terms.”

The teachers also shared their thoughts on adjusting back to face-to-face classes. In an interview with Special Science Teacher Emman Patata, he voiced the importance of students being able to learn in a school setting like before the pandemic. He wished that “…All batches adi na ha school [will be here in school], na maka-interact na kamo [that all of you may get to interact] with everyone, and to return to the pre-pandemic setting.” 

Overall, everyone is still adjusting, even the teachers. But don’t worry, it all just takes time. Once time passes by, we’ll be glad to look back to the days when we experienced jitters for our first day of classes or face-to-face lectures. All things considered, I hope these insights by some people from the EVC community have helped you gain some inspiration for the school year, even just a little. 

We’re all in this together, in whatever learning mode it may be.