The Pros and Cons of Virtual School Saanvi Kunisetty

 The Pros and Cons of Virtual School 

Saanvi Kunisetty

We all know that we wish this pandemic would end, but we’ve also gotten quite good at finding the silver lining in otherwise unwanted things. It’s a situation of pros and cons. One of the best examples that I, as a student, experience daily, is virtual school.

Pros:

1. Time-Efficient: With virtual school, there’s no need for the usual transportation arrangements and busing with going to school and clubs, and coming back from them. This comes to actually save a lot of time, even hours perhaps. This time can then be spent productively, doing work, or we can just use that time to wind down. In addition, some teachers even release you early from class when its virtual, which gives you more time.

2. Late Start: We all hate getting out of bed early in the morning (or at least most of us do). Because of a completely virtual school model, we are able to begin school at 9 instead of the usual early start. This gives us a chance to wake up later than usual, and gives us more time in the morning, preventing the usual rush to do things such as catch the bus or show up to class on time.

Cons:

1. Tech Issues: Probably one of the main consequences of virtual school is the technology issues that automatically come with it. Not everyone has great internet connection or high bandwidth, so things such as lagging, voice breaking up, screen freezing, and even getting kicked out of the meeting have become very common. Sometimes these technology issues impose actual issues in learning, especially when the teacher is the one facing them.

2. Lack of Social Interaction: As humans, we are, by nature, social beings. We crave to feel included in groups, talk and communicate with others, and make all kinds of bonds and relationships with others. Being virtual, it’s really hard to have this interaction when you are staring at a bunch of tiles. 

3. Effects on Health: The sudden and abrupt increase in our screen time has shown itself to be harmful to our health. Staring at a screen all day during school, and then going back to screens for homework, it hasn’t been very good for our eyes. This causes frequent headaches, and even migraines.