Campus life as we know it is drastically different now. We’re wearing masks all day (with good reason) and have to walk through an actual maze to eat in the dining halls. In addition to that, students are put into groups to attend class, on alternating days; remembering which group you’re in on that specific day for all of your hybrid classes can be a struggle.

So, here are some pros and cons to our new way of learning and experiences on campus.

For those who do not know, online asynchronous classes are remote classes with no set time for meeting. This gives the student greater flexibility but presents some challenges for students who need a set class schedule to get things done.

Online synchronous classes are run during a scheduled time. This is great for having a set schedule that you can stick to and be accountable for. I’m not sure if there is a bad one for this. This semester has a lot more options for online classes, which is always good.

The university prides itself on experiential learning, and its biggest sell was the study abroad programs they have throughout the school year. Obviously, those programs aren’t operating currently, but what events and programs can run for those interested in this kind of experiential learning? Students will still have an opportunity to participate in in-person labs in order to get that hands-on experience for their student research projects, but it could still be underwhelming for the enjoyment of this semester.

I was not sure I was going to enjoy hybrid classes, but as of right now, they’re cool. Meeting with the professor one day and the next being online is great for limiting contact with many of the larger classes I am a part of and could be really effective in keeping the campus COVID-free.

The safety of everyone on campus is of the utmost importance and I was glad to see that everyone is doing their part in wearing their masks around campus, except for areas where you are permitted to have them off for eating. Even then, when people were finished eating and their friend was not – they still put their mask on.
The school is being proactive in other ways, as well. Different lounges and spaces on campus are taking social distancing seriously by putting up engaging signage to remind students to social distance, with numerous staff members sanitizing the spaces. I’d like to make a big shout out to the COVID Task Force for implementing these changes.

Having these wellness kits distributed to everyone really assures us that we are on a good path to making strides in lowering the statistics in Connecticut and ensuring that everyone has the resources they need to do their part in keeping campus COVID-free.
This semester is something new that we are all having to navigate through. If we follow the restrictive measures put in place to safeguard our campus, I think we could potentially go back to regular campus life in Spring 2021.