Together apart: I’m feeling cooped up but coping well, and we’ll get through this
The COVID-19 pandemic is disrupting everyone’s lives—and students at the University of Colorado Boulder are no exception. From moving off campus to adjusting to classes online, the lives of students have turned upside down in a relatively short period of time.
We invited students to document their experience transitioning to remote learning. Here is what one of them said:
In many ways, it's like we’re starting the semester over. For the most part, the transition has been smooth, but we’re having to re-figure out how our professors operate.
Sarah Foster
One of my favorite things about in-person classes is the discussions and debates we have. Although we have Zoom to simulate in-person classes, it's not the same. Most of my classes actually hold written discussions through Canvas, requiring one to two posts per class period.
CU Boulder has handled this situation well, and I'm confident that the university will do what is necessary to ensure the safety of its students, staff and faculty during this distressing time.
The campus sent out many emails that contain instructions for operating the new online learning applications. All of my professors have been consistent in staying calm about the situation.
COVID-19 has already developed my flexibility and adaptability, which are both useful skills for situations similar to this that may occur in the future.​"
My professors even evolved the curriculum to make sure each student is capable of succeeding and can still meet course requirements. They have also been more lenient than usual in making sure we have time to complete assignments while transitioning into a very different lifestyle. For some of us, that includes moving back home with our families.
A couple of my professors have even personally reached out to me to check on how I'm doing amidst the crisis, which is awesome and makes social distancing seem not so distant anymore.
Through the COVID-19 situation, I am trying to keep everything as normal as possible: I work on class assignments at the same time each day, I communicate with my professors as though I am seeing them in-person, and I try to work in a room that is not my bedroom in order to separate school and life outside of school.
COVID-19 has already developed my flexibility and adaptability, which are both useful skills for situations similar to this that may occur in the future.
I must admit that I am feeling a bit cooped up, and I’m eager to be back on campus again, free to roam the Norlin Quad or eat lunch in the Laughing Goat.
Last week, an email from Dean White was sent, reminding students that CU Boulder got through the Spanish influenza in 1918. To me, it proved that we can also get through the coronavirus. This is not the end of the world.
This is part of an ongoing series documenting student experiences during the COVID-19 pandemic.