LOS ANGELES — Sarah Goldstein is meeting her teachers from her patio, virtually of course. Her home is miles away from Eagle Rock Junior and Senior High School where she goes to school.
“It’s just sort of strange to be sort of seeing everyone through a screen. It's like we’re all present but we’re not really present and there’s so many more distractions around,” Goldstein said.
Some distractions aren’t too bad such as having her cat, Sebastian, watching her every move. Others, such as having her air conditioning not working, are a bit uncomfortable.
“I think that that’s something I never really thought about just air conditioning, you know going to school for eight hours and having a place where it was cool and everything was comfortable. It’s just something I never thought would be a challenge but it’s hard to focus in the heat.”
But it’s not just the heat, some parents are complaining they cannot get through to the school or technology hotline to get help with Zoom. One parent said she waited an hour and finally hung up.
LAUSD Superintendent Austin Beutner answered questions about the issues recently. He asked for patience as they get used to remote learning.
“It’s our first week. So we’re trying to make sure all these things get worked through but there are things like power outages that are beyond our control and we’re understanding," Beutner said. "No student or family should feel the pressure if they can’t get on. We'll be there the next day when they can get on, we’ll make sure the student gets caught up.”
As for Goldstein, she misses being on campus, hanging out with her friends during lunch and having that true high school experience, she said.
“It seems just a little bit rushed, it seems like no one is too prepared for this but then again how could you be, it’s first time doing anything like this so I understand that there are quite a few issues but I expect that everything will get sorted out soon and everyone’s questions will be answered," she said.
But what she’s really hoping, she said, is that soon she’ll be back on this campus, seeing teachers, and classmates in person instead of through a computer screen.