The new era of coronavirus learning has been strange. The approach of schools in Minnesota has varied. For BSM, most high school students are on a hybrid learning system where they are being taught in person one day and at home zooming into class the next. However, some students chose a different experience this year: online learning everyday.

Senior Braxton Bogen is one student who chose to be an online student. For him and his family, it was an easy choice to do virtual learning this year. “My father has hypertension and diabetes so we looked it up [and he] was 120% more likely to die due to COVID,” Bogen said. 

While the option of choosing online school was easy for Bogen, excelling in this new program has not been. This new way of learning has caused new problems, and has added to the growing list caused by COVID-19. “Personally I feel like it has hindered [my education]. I guess it’s nice to be able to do education from home, but with it I think comes a lot of distractions,” Bogen said.  

The amount of freedom a student has at home opens the door for more temptations. 

Without being under the watchful eye of a teacher while at school, Bogen has found it hard to stay focused on his schoolwork. “There’s a lot more temptation, so I may not pay attention as well as I would in class. [This includes] having the temptation to go on my phone scrolling through TikTok or something,” Bogen said. 

This type of learning is new and foreign to everyone, but Bogen thinks it should be an option to consider if someone close to a student is vulnerable. “I would recommend it based [on] if [students] have someone at home that’s more at risk of death with COVID going around,” Bogen said.  

While it may not be the most ideal for the student, it could be a safer option for the people around them. Currently, 7.4% of senior high students at BSM have chosen the virtual option over the hybrid option. For senior Will Feyereisn, the hybrid option has been a great improvement for his learning. “Compared to last year, this learning environment feels smoother and more organized than [last year],” Feyereisn said.