When we started school this year, a wave of illness swept through LHS. I was a victim of it too. Right now, a lot of my peers are sick as well. Like every year, Homecoming has a tendency to do that.
How exactly do I know this? Of course, some people are absent from my classes. However, many other students choose to come to class sick. It can be uncomfortable to sit next to someone coughing uncontrollably, but I’ve been in their position too.
This is a culture that has long been tolerated in school. There are guidelines from the state government that are supposed to guide whether you stay home or not, but when’s the last time anyone looked at that?
Even though it is the morally correct decision to stay home when you’re contagious, missing even a day of class can put you far behind your peers.
Particularly for my classmates in fast-paced IB classes, missing a day of school means missing labs, tests, and lectures that are all difficult to make up. When I missed one of my even days back in September because I was sick, I immediately fell far behind in math.
The following day, I returned to class. I still wasn’t feeling well, but no way was I going to miss another day of school. Especially for students also missing school for athletics or other activities, missing any more school just isn’t a feasible option.
I don’t really think anyone is at fault for this. My parents don’t like me missing school, but they also aren’t going to force me to go if I’m genuinely ill. Teachers sometimes make it difficult to make up exams or labs, but this isn’t their fault. Teachers shouldn’t be expected to adapt to everything students want.
The biggest reason I see my peers come to school when they’re sick is due to the overachieving and perfectionist culture among IB and AP students. To a lot of these kids, putting school in front of your own health is commonplace.
None of this is revolutionary information, but it’s interesting coming out of a pandemic.
During my sophomore and junior years, any COVID-19 symptoms (fever, cough, sore throat, headache) meant you would absolutely stay home. If you came to school with any sign of being sick, they would send you home. The school even went as far as doing symptom checks at the door before you started school every day.
It worked to an extent; we were able to stay in school for most of these two years, and the only time I caught COVID was at a concert. I am very grateful that our students, teachers, and other staff members were able to stay healthy.
Do I think that we need to go back to these dark times? Not necessarily. However, I would love to see the culture of “powering through the day” when you’re sick change. If you’re not feeling well, taking care of yourself should be a priority. I’m guilty of not following this either.
In a post-COVID world, we are all accustomed to virtual and remote learning. We are more prepared than ever to work from home. Teachers post content on Google Classroom. There are so many resources on the internet to help you understand what you missed. Teachers are always willing to help you catch up once you come back. Even though life is returning back to normal, some of the hygienic practices we adopted during the pandemic should stay.
