Valley Stream parents chronicle schooling during the pandemic

Early last fall, with the uncertainty of the coronavirus pandemic still looming, Valley Streamer Sabrina Carreras elected to have her ninth-grade daughter, Kennedy, attend Memorial Junior High School virtually. 

Six months into the school year, however, Kennedy, like many other students, has struggled with the social isolation of virtual learning, and others, who attend school in a hybrid mix of in-person and online classes, have had to contend with disruptions when infection rates rise.

“My daughter Kennedy was always a very actively involved student in music and sports, and being remote has kept her from participating in that, which has taken a toll on her emotionally,” Carreras said. “My daughter internalized a lot of this, and she has become more introverted. Now there are many moments when she doesn’t have the desire to do much of anything, because she knows there’s not much she can do in a pandemic.” 

Both of Nana Akaeze’s sons, who are in grades 11 and 10, attended Central High School on a hybrid schedule last fall. Typically, they were in school twice a week and at home three days for virtual classes. 

Although Akaeze expressed anxiety over the possibility of her boys contracting the coronavirus while at school, she said they enjoyed seeing their classmates in person.

“Covid affects everyone differently, and we were just scared about how it would affect the whole family if the boys brought it home,” she said.

In recent months, Central has had to close twice temporarily after Covid-19 cases were discovered among staff and students. With the fear of further disruptions, Akaeze decided in January to enroll them in full remote classes. Her sons, though, can still attend club meetings and socially distant school events.

Noemi Diaz has two children — a daughter in her junior year at Central and a son in eighth grade at Memorial. Her son is on a hybrid schedule, and her daughter is on a fully remote schedule. 

Diaz has kept her son in hybrid learning, and has noticed he struggles academically when not in the school building. In November and December, Memorial too was forced to close twice because of Covid-19 cases at the school, but Diaz said the closures were short.

While her daughter has excelled academically in remote learning, she has struggled without social interactions. Between her two children, Diaz said, parenting during this time has posed unprecedented challenges.

 “The hardest part about having children that are going to school during this pandemic is knowing how to support them without breathing down their necks,” Diaz said. “We worry about our children and about how to balance their psychological and mental health, as well as their physical health. The academic part is concerning, but the time lost in their growth and personal development is harder for me as a parent to try to help them with.”

Glorisbel Roman has a daughter in fifth grade at Shaw Avenue School. At first, she said she struggled with managing the hybrid schedule, with some minor technical hiccups, but has now become more adept at the system. Despite that, she said she hopes her daughter’s schooling can return to normal.

“My daughter loves school, so she’s not one of those kids who has to be encouraged all the time,” she said. “However, I hope things will go back to normal soon so she can socialize more and feel more free and not as restricted in school.”