Pandemic leads to an early-life crisis for kids

Published on November 3, 2021 by Contributed

Editor’s note: Nov. 3 was take your kid to work day. This story was written by David Wylie’s daughter as she learned about what writers and reporters do on the job.

By Selah Wylie

In the Okanagan, COVID has affected almost everyone here. Despite this, schools have taken precautions and they seem to be paying off.

As a student, I can speak for my learning community. Even when cases rise, the education system has contained it enough to continue school in person.

During the lockdown we seemed to see it as an extra-long vacation, but were quickly proven wrong, as the lessons became increasingly harder to understand and the resources were limited. This took a toll on our mental health as the work piled up and we began to crave attention. Some of our grades dropped, especially in classes where we struggle. For graduates, the last quarter was very stressful and the graduation was forced to be online or cancelled.

Once we had returned to school we thought that things had settled down and we could return to normal. Unfortunately, our hopes had been squashed a little when they implemented cohorts, as that would mean that we couldn’t see anyone outside of our learning circle. Some of us were alright with it, but some of us were dealing with isolation or unable to escape bullying. We had to catch up on all the things we missed or re-do it while balancing all our new workload because we didn’t understand what was being taught across the screen. As a result, some students started coping with weed or vapes, and some couldn’t deal with it and turned to avoidance. I was one of the students that had to give up something I was passionate about because of the stress of keeping up.

As the pandemic continues to drag on we have either adapted or found a way of coping, whether it was healthy or not. Despite our early-life crisis, things seem to be looking up and I am hopeful for the future.

I see this as a learning opportunity for more than us students; everyone has to deal with the craziness of a global pandemic, but it is an experience we’re all going through together.

About the author

Selah Wylie is a Grade 9 student in the Okanagan. During take your kid to work day, she learned that reporters are busy people and have to stay on top of the news.