By: Ameera Vergara
You take in the familiar sight of hallways with people walking around rather than a bed full of pillows. Instead of slouching with your legs curled and folded up, you sit upright in attention. Your ears are filled not with your earphones but with the sound of laughter echoing through the room. You realize you’re no longer in your house. But you’re in your second home with the people you’ve missed.
It has been two years, but Rosebuds are finally back on the school campus. With the return of face-to-face classes, students have had to make numerous adjustments. It has surely been a rollercoaster of emotions for the high school students, but ultimately they are just glad to be back.
Thoughts and Feelings
“I am glad that f2f classes are back,” said Kylie Francisco from Grade 9. “At first, I was a bit scared of our subjects since I’m not used to having classes on-site anymore. But once I got over my fear (for most of the subjects), f2f classes have been nothing but fun for me.”
G Miral, a Grade 12 student, shared her thoughts about the face-to-face setup.
“I’ve been homeschooled since kindergarten, so I’ve never experienced or been to any kind of classes. So all of this is very new to me. At first, of course, I was pretty nervous about it. I didn’t know if I was going to make any friends or not, but Rosehill as a whole made me feel so welcome, and now I’m just excited to wake up every day and go to school with my new friends,” she said.
Diane Josef from Grade 7 said returning to face-to-face classes was better for her mental well-being. “I’m mostly enjoying it because I tend to be a very social person, so seeing people in real life and interacting with them is better on my psyche.”
Facing Challenges in Scheduling & Time Management
Though Rosebuds were happy about the return of face-to-face classes, they still encountered obstacles along the way. After getting used to attending school online, students expressed their difficulties transitioning back to having classes onsite.
“Adjusting to it is kinda difficult because a lot of us have established routines that we have come up with in the two years that we’ve been in isolation,” Sophie Centeno from Grade 11 said.
She said she has less time to do things she used to do, such as extracurriculars and after school commitments. However, adjusting to an established schedule taught her to manage her time and plan her activites better.
“It was pretty hard adjusting to it and having to cut down on my sleep schedule. But I’m starting to get used to it,” Sophie said.
Rosebuds also have to deal with the travel time from their homes to school. During online classes, it was only a short distance from their beds to their study area. However, face-to-face classes meant having to deal with traffic and transportation issues.
“My main problem is what lies after f2f classes rather than during. When I get home, I’m left with little energy to do homework because it feels like the whole workday is done. And the traffic just to get home is especially draining,” G Miral said.
Many Rosehill students live outside Antipolo, so they also face similar situations of waking up earlier and coming home later.
“Coming from Quezon City, I have to wake up at 4:00 am just to get to Antipolo by 7:00. And after the dismissal at 12, I usually get home by 3:00 or 4:00 pm. So that’s almost four or five hours on the road (give or take),” said G Miral.
Hannah Bayhon, a football varsity player, said that it was difficult to adjust her sleeping schedule because she had to wake up earlier now. “I’d have to sleep earlier as well. If I didn’t sleep earlier, then I’d be more tired in school and in training.”
Her varsity training lasts two hours, from 2:30 pm to 4:30 pm. She said it affected her schedule because she struggled with accomplishing more things in a shorter time. To adapt to it, she budgets her time studying better.
“I had to make sure [that] my time for studying…I use it more efficiently,” she said.
Dealing with Nervousness and Anxiety
Rosebuds also dealt with issues affecting their emotional and mental well-being. Returning to onsite classes required students to step out of their comfort zones.
Maia Sy, aGrade 9 student, said she felt more pressure in recitations during onsite classes. It was harder to keep calm because she thought that she needed to give the correct answer on the spot.
“I was kinda panicking during class because I get called all of a sudden, and I don’t have a choice…[unlike] in the chatbox, you have to speak right there. I get scared,” she said.
Even though she felt nervous during classes, Maia said that onsite classes helped her pay more attention to the lessons. “When you’re in f2f, it really tells you, ‘you have to listen to this’ because there’s no recording. And you have to write down stuff.”
Kylie Francisco from Grade 9 also shared how face-to-face classes gave her anxiety. “Whenever we’re having onsite classes, I can’t help but feel anxious. I get scared that my answers would be wrong when I recite, or I would do badly in some onsite activities,” she said.
However, Kylie said onsite classes also add to her readiness to learn. “This anxiety motivates me to focus more in class and to learn. Whenever I focus on our classes, I realize just how fun these classes are, even if they’re sometimes challenging,” she said.
Returning to school meant that Rosebuds were no longer studying on their own. Instead, they now have their classmates, teachers, and fellow Rosebuds with them.
Sophie Centeno said that being able to see and talk to her friends physically benefited her emotionally and mentally.
“Being with them, smiling and having fun with them, eases the stress and makes that stress worth it.”
Chloe Gannod from Grade 7 also said that being with her friends has made her feel better during onsite classes.
“I’m not really that much of a social person, but it makes me feel a lot better to be in the presence of my other classmates,” she said.
Benefits of the Onsite Set-up
In the current set-up of onsite classes, Grades 1 to 6 go to school on the first week of every cycle. In the second week of the cycle, the high school attends classes onsite. All students go to school from Tuesdays to Thursdays from 8:00am to 11:40am.
Some students shared how going to school for three days every other week was helpful in adjusting to onsite classes.
“Since we’re used to the online set-up, slowly transitioning to f2f classes for three days is a helpful way of adjusting. Without that slow transition, I don’t think many students would be able to fully adjust back to full face to face,” said Raya Relingo from Grade 12.
Chloe Gannod said it was really different during pre-pandemic times, so it was good to help the students slowly get used to attending classes onsite.
“We would not be able to adjust that quickly to the previous schedule of 8 subjects in a day from 8:00 to 3:00. The fact that we have only three subjects a day and have three days in two weeks is very helpful,” she said.
Chloe Dimatulac from Grade 8 said taking things slow could help everyone eventually grow accustomed to face-to-face classes again.
“It’s a small step going back to how things used to be. I think jumping right into fully f2f again would force us to adapt to big things too quickly which would create a lot of hassle,” she said.
Aside from the three-day schedule helping students, students said that going to school makes subjects more engaging and interactive.
“It makes life a lot easier, especially with our science projects because I need to exchange materials with my group members,” said Chloe Gannod.
Maia Sy said P.E classes are better onsite because she’s around her classmates.
“When you’re in f2f, P.E is easier because you’re with your friends around, so it’s more fun, enjoyable, and it’s less stressful,” she said.
Best Experiences During Onsite Classes
More than a month has passed since having classes on-site again, and Rosebuds have already made many memories with their fellow students.
Raya said her best experience back in school was spending time with her classmates during her health breaks and enrichment periods. “It makes me feel really happy to bond and reconnect with them,” she said.
Chloe Dimatulac also said interacting with her classmates felt nice. “Recently, every f2f day, I take videos with one of my batchmates which have been really fun,” she said.
For Catherine Cordero from Grade 8, her best experience onsite was the welcoming activity that the student council prepared.
“I loved the games, and I think it was wonderful that we had fun and at the same time got rid of the awkward ice that surrounded the first few days,” she said.
Reminiscing the Past and Looking Towards the Future
Though classes are back onsite, not everything is the same as before. The threat of COVID-19 still looms, and everyone must observe the proper health protocols.
“Everybody follows safety protocols because, although things are starting to look better, and we’re starting to adapt to the new normal, the pandemic is still there and it’s no joke….I just expect everybody to take it as seriously as they did when the virus first broke out,” said Sophie Centeno.
She said some people could still opt for an online or hybrid setup because it lessens one’s exposure to the virus.
“Not everybody is comfortable with the idea of fully transitioning to face to face. It’s good that we have it some days, but we still have to think of the safety of the people,” she said.
Observing health protocols meant that the school had to put on hold some activities we had in the past. Some students shared which events they missed in school.
“I miss Intrams because it’s so fun. From my experience you get closer to a lot of people in school,” said Maia Sy.
“I hope that the school will bring back Intrams and Family Day f2f. I miss bonding with my fellow rosebuds through competition. These events are actually the ones I’m most excited about whenever a new school year starts,” Kylie Francisco said.
Catherine Cordero said she hopes to experience more activities and projects from the school and Student Council.
“I’m excited for more SC projects and the different activities the school will hold to honor the various subjects we have, such as Humanities week and Math and Science fairs,” she said.
Hannah Bayhon, the current student council Vice President, said she looks forward to planning and hosting face-to-face events that the students can enjoy. “Those would be the things I’m most looking forward to and [would] be the most fun to plan as well,” she said.
Now, Rosebuds can look forward to what’s in store for the future. As long as everyone follows health protocols and remains healthy, they can learn and experience new things and enjoy the school year to the fullest.
“With onsite [classes], I feel like everyone is able to express their initial opinions and reactions to things. I think this makes class discussions fruitful and interactive, which helps us learn further. I’m happy that we finally have a chance to redeem the last two years and make more memories with each other,” Catherine Cordero said.
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