Though it seems that Klein Collins is bustling with more people each day, many students are still choosing to participate in virtual learning. Unlike last year’s online setup, being able to have the choice of virtual schooling requires students to follow a lot more rules in order to ensure their success such as having to have cameras on at all, being on time, and participating as much as possible during class.

When the U.S. first went into quarantine in March of 2020, schools weren’t prepared to have to teach thousands of students from home. With the lack of planning time, there weren’t many rules other than being on-time and participating as much as possible during class.

 Zoom calls weren’t mandatory and many assignments were on Edgenuity in order to make the transitioning process easier for students and teachers. After school was out, Klein Independent School District announced that the 2020-2021 school year would be a lot more structured and organized than their previous attempt at Covid-19 instruction, and of course, as promised, things are a lot different this school year.

The halls of Klein Collins were almost completely empty at the beginning of the first quarter, but as many students’ grades started to suffer,  they began trickling back to school, filling the hallways once again. Subsequently, Klein Independent School District began cracking down on Klein Online students in order to make sure they were on task while learning from home.

 Of course, Klein Online students would have to be on time to each live session in order to not be counted tardy as well as participate as instructed by their teachers during these live Zoom sessions, but there was also a new rule that most students weren’t very happy about. 

Despite being told last year that students could not be forced to turn their cameras on while at home due to privacy laws, all Klein Online students are required to have their cameras on and their faces in view at all times so that teachers can ensure that their students are wide awake and attentive during class.

Klein On Campus students are also no longer able to switch between online learning and in-person learning without a parent or doctor’s note. If for some reason a campus student cannot attend school, they will simply have to do online, self-paced learning without Zoom instruction. 

On Dec. 11, 2020, an email was sent out to all Klein Independent School District parents and staff, essentially stating that unless a student had health concerns or family at home with health concerns, all failing students would have to come back to campus. With that being said, a lot more people will be crowding the halls after Christmas break, just in time for midterms. Though we are still in a pandemic, Klein ISD is doing its best to keep students safe, on track and ready for the next grade level.