Online school has been incredibly tough for students at McMahon and Norwalk Public Schools in general. As we move back into quarantine and as cases spike, we are faced with the same reality we were faced with in mid-March: everyone is going to have to do school online. For so many, staring at a computer for 7 hours is draining. People have trouble getting up to the sound of their alarms just to look at a screen more. I've talked with so many in the community and they've all echoed the same basic sentiment: school shouldn't be this long. People aren't getting adequate physical exercise, we've seen a dip in motivation, and mental health has plummeted. According to a study completed by the Boston University School of Public Health, depression among all demographics has tripled. A report released by the CDC in August identified that about a quarter of College Students (who are similarly doing online schooling) have considered suicide in the last 30 days. Also according to the CDC, compared to last year, mental health emergencies have gone up 31% among people aged 12-17. A Gallup poll found that 29% of parents have said that their child is "already experiencing harm" to their mental health due to the closures. This poll was taken back in June, so I'm sure that number has spiked even since then. I could go on and on.

These are incredibly terrifying statistics. To bring it to a more personal level, I've witnessed firsthand some of my closest friends yearning for human connection. I've talked with those who have said that some days they didn't get out of bed. People I know have said they've gained weight over quarantine and others have said that they feel hopeless and lonely. I have felt at times demotivated and isolated like I never had before.

While not every issue that kids are having in quarantine is solvable, there are a few that clearly are. I believe that we must shorten the school day and establish safe extracurricular activities for students to participate in. A study from the University of British Columbia finds that spending less time on screens equates to better mental health and higher levels of optimism. If screens are the first thing kids wake up to, it creates an unhealthy norm for those of us who would otherwise spend the first hours of a day exercising or spending time with family. The National Board for Professional Teaching Standards recommends that high school students only have 3-4 hours of instructional time. McMahon MUST shorten the school day to what it was last school year when we went full online and establish a committee within the school or district to come up with and then implement socially distant sports and other extracurricular activities for kids to participate in, whether it be in person at a distance with masks or entirely remote. McMahon this year I believe has failed at this, simply resuming the normal sports with masks until someone gets a Coronavirus case and the whole thing is shut down. When we are faced with a situation like this, we must adapt for the sake of the mental health of our community, more specifically the students. If you made it this far, thank you so much for giving your time to listen to me, and I sincerely hope you sign this petition in order to create real change in our community.