Page 54 - SANRAKSHIKA 2020 E - BOOK'

THE PLACE WE DETESTED, IS WHAT WE’RE LOOKING FORWARD TO..
Shreya Mann
D/o Vikram Singh Mann, IPS IG, APS-I, New Delhi
Not long ago we were sitting in a place with about forty people shaking hands, hugging, and laughing away in groups. Not long ago we were sitting in a place where the teacher could make out if you were being attentive in class or not.
Yes, that’s right. I am talking about school. The REAL school.
I am not delineating something which is now being referred to as “online school”. I could never imagine that I would come up to this day when I would miss school, my teachers, and the feeling of being around people. The last time I was in a social gathering was probably my last board exam. I wish we knew that we wouldn’t be meeting for a long time after that.
Just like everybody else, I too was looking forward to attending online classes in the initial days. But soon, the exhilaration turned into despair. Connectivity and network issues (the easiest and the most plausible excuse!), unwelcome guests entering and annotating classes, and tiresome eyes are the major disadvantages of sitting and learning in front of a fourteen-inch screen. But irrespective of this, the teachers make sure to bombard us with assignments and tests regularly. They just don’t seem to understand how cumbersome it is to attempt tests online and stare at a device for more than seven hours. But a few masterminds have simply figured out how to fool teachers, bunk classes and how to score effortlessly in tests by putting their great minds to work. The most common remarks which
we undoubtedly come across every day are: Am I audible? I have a poor internet connection! Is my screen visible? My device wasn’t responding!
Just like how everything has its pros and cons, the online school has some too. Sitting in the comfort of your home, doing whatever and whenever you feel like, not paying heed to teachers during classes at times, and most importantly not having to go to school in the scorching heat or the biting cold weather. No doubt, these are some of the perks of online school but it can certainly not substitute, sleeping on the last bench, sneaking food in class, buying heavenly munchies from the canteen or, continuously looking at the clock for the bell to ring.
Being a science student, lab practicals are mandatory for us. I was really looking forward to going to the lab but alas! We couldn’t even go once. Also, I’ll be more than happy to go to those vexing yoga and PE periods which once seemed so repressive.
Schools aren’t likely to open anytime soon and even if they do, we would be asked to wear masks and carry disinfectants at all times. I refuse to believe that such a place with attention and cautious social distancing of this sort, should be even termed as a ‘school’. Till then, I guess all of us will have to learn to adapt to this ‘new normal’ and pray for a return to good ol’ days. Oh, how I wish I could escape this virtual world to the real world! But that doesn’t seem like an option in the near future, does it?
54