Broken mics, poor internet connection and the struggles of constantly being kicked out of online class are all part of the nightmare that is Zoom. Unfortunately, the students and staff at West Essex have seen it all. Virtual learning at West Essex has definitely been an adjustment for the district during the course of this year. Even though this has not been the easiest experience, the staff and students are making light of the situation through lighthearted Zoom stories that have alleviated the stress of online school. 

Long time math teacher, Lorna Danckwerth,  explains that she is so used to regular school, the switch to online schooling has definitely been a difficult shift. 

“The fact that I forgot to plug it in and the battery died and all of the sudden everybody was gone. I was like uh-oh, what did I do?” Danckwerth said. 

This incident is one among many others that come with using the mysterious Zoom. Similar fumbles have been popular among many other staff members at West Essex. When something goes wrong, the students’ faces tell it all. 

“I unplugged it to go up to the board to use the whiteboard because my Smartboard, of course, wasn’t working,” Danckwerth said “all of a sudden when I unplugged it, looking at the pictures of the kids, they were going frantic. I had to leave and come back.” 

Each grade level has definitely witnessed their own challenges that differ from the in-person learning everyone has been so used to. Especially at the beginning stages of highschool, Zoom is definitely a challenge. Without these challenges, these crazy stories wouldn’t exist.  Freshman, Nicole Campolattaro faced the unthinkable during a virtual math class. 

“That craziest experience I have encountered while using Zoom is that I got logged out of one of my Zoom meetings in the middle of taking a test,” Campolattaro said. 

From Zoom taking students out of tests to casually facing some other challenges while taking a casual sandwich break, Senior Daniel Caseare has encountered his fair share of time crunches. 

“I went off the camera for a five minute break that my teacher gave us and I went to make a sandwich. I got back on the call in time, but I forgot to add the bread. Too bad it was a peanut butter and jelly sandwich, it didn’t taste as good without the bread” Caseare said. 

It is fair to say that students and staff have been through some crazy experiences on and off camera during this virtual learning experience. Zoom kicking students out during tests, sandwich mishaps and even losing the entire class during a lecture all capture the true beauty behind Zoom. 

Zoom is definitely known to have been a wild-roller coaster for us all during this virtual learning period. Through the good and bad, the West Essex community has definitely been tested during this learning process. Luckily, there have been many experiences that have brought us stories filled with much joy and laughter especially during a challenging time like this.

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Photo credit: “Acer C7 Chromebook” by Ready Set Monday!!!

(https://search.creativecommons.org/photos/d60ca577-8c07-473d-8666-39e0c3c98e98)