 I'm Grace Lodik, and this is Educating Ourselves in These Difficult Times on ThinkTech Hawaii. I am a communications major at Hawaii Pacific University and intern here at ThinkTech. In my series, I cover the unique challenges presented by coronavirus and how it has impacted education. In today's episode, we will be delving into the impact of coronavirus on student life, the shift of college culture from a campus to online setting, and how this pandemic has impacted the younger generation's perspective on global issues. Today, my special guest is Kyla Baker, a sophomore pre-law and social work student and sailing athlete at UH Manoa. She will be sharing how her coronavirus experience has impacted her college life and what college life looks like in the midst of a pandemic. Thank you for being a guest on our show today, Kyla. No problem. Thank you for having me. I'm sure in the midst of these challenging times, our lives have changed drastically. So can you just give us an overview of what your life looked like prior to the pandemic and what it looks like now? Yes. Before the pandemic, I had a very free-spirited life. I was able to go to the beach, hang out with my friends, and pretty much live life without fear of this serious virus. And now it has significantly changed. It's definitely been a watershed moment for me. Especially as a college student, overall, how has this pandemic changed your college experience? Have you had a shift to online classes at your school? Are you still living on campus? What is it looking like now? That is a very good question. I am no longer living on campus. I moved out of my assigned student housing last week and very quickly moved back home with my parents. UH has shifted from in-person classes to an online class now. We utilize Zoom, and that in itself has been a very interesting experience and definitely has impacted my motivation for going to school. Yeah, I heard that many schools have been utilizing Zoom and other methods of implementing online learning. So what have your experiences been like with online learning? Do you think that you're still receiving the same experience you would otherwise be receiving in the classroom, or how has it been different? I am not receiving the same experience. I am a first-year student, and I jumped into college excited for the college experience. That's why I dorm because I was excited to be on a larger campus for my high school. And I am a very people-oriented person, so it is important for me to have that social interaction with other students. That's the type of environment that I thrive in. And shifting to online classes definitely has made me really focus in school more. I don't interact with my classmates anymore as I would. I used to be able to go from my class back to my dorm with classmates at the end of the day. I used to be able to go and eat food on campus and really develop that relationship with my roommate. However, because I moved out and my roommate moved out as well, we're both at home and she's all the way in Elba. It's definitely been hard to maintain those relationships. What major primary formative experiences do you think have been lost as a result of shifting to an online campus? I believe that having an in-person class experience definitely puts more structure around your life. In those environments, I'm able to develop a relationship with my peers and have in-class discussions. And I think those are very important attributes to the classroom so that you're able to develop and share your own opinions in that setting. However, when you're in class online, you're not able to interact with your peers as much. It's mostly just lectures and slideshows. You're not really able to develop that relationship with your professors and teachers like you once were able to. Now it's pretty much just emailing and doing your best to finish assignments and labs. You can't really ask for help anymore in person, which is something that's important to me. I think that it's definitely been a challenging time and I think that equally for students and administrators, just learning how to adjust to these technologies definitely is a learning curve. Would you say overall your classroom experience has become more or less formal and how do you think that your classmates have been coping with a transition as well? That's a very good question. We talked about this in my social work class yesterday, actually. My social work professor is here to check in on us and see how we're doing. And for me, it's been difficult finding a place in my house that's quiet because it is a five-person household and with multiple people working at the same time and on confidence calls, it's been hard to find that time and that peace and quiet in order to focus on classes. And for me, it's just being able to take time at the end of the day to pretty much just take time to myself because it is a small environment that I'm in now and just be able to pretty much repeat the reset button for my classmates. I know that they've been having a difficult time finding a way to cope with this and also have that same person interaction that they once had because they are also extroverts. I have classmates that have been cooking more, actually. That's something that I've been doing as well and a lot of them are starting to exercise more. And it's just very different. It's very different for us. It's definitely wonderful to hear that you guys have been finding ways to keep yourselves productive, perhaps exercise more creativity. I definitely think that that is important to maintain some kind of structure in our everyday lives as we go through this pandemic and adopting this new mindset of accepting the new normal for the time being. You mentioned earlier that your social work professor has been checking in with you guys on how you're doing and how you're coping with the changes. Have any other professors been checking in with you or implementing more lenient practices such as altering grading to a pass-fail scale or allowing extensions on deadlines or altering assignment requirements? Have you had any of those? Yes, for my language course, my professor has changed her syllabus so that it is more heavyweight on homework and participation, which definitely helps during this time. My social work professor has changed her curriculum and added more projects, but more so it is self-reflecting and explaining how you cope with this time and more of a self-reflection. However, my lab, I take oceanography and through this, it has been downloading numerous programs on my laptop and trying to perform these experiments that you typically would perform in a professional lab and being able to document your findings. And with that class, my professor has been more lenient, but she has not changed the curriculum thus far, so I'm hoping that goes a lot better than it's going right now for me. I can definitely imagine for classes such as labs or even clinical hours for your social work program, I can see how those would definitely be a challenge during this time. What type of strategies have you been implementing to keep yourself on track with classes such as social work clinical hours or your oceanography lab? For my oceanography lab, I make sure to take a look at the lab worksheet at the beginning of the week and slowly throughout the week work on it. I haven't been very disciplined in that regard as of lately, but I'm slowly figuring out the ropes of it all. With social work, it has, we don't really do clinicals anymore for that. We don't have that in-person interaction anymore because of this pandemic. So mostly right now it is just going over different types of social work and different ways to interact with other people during this. My professor did acknowledge that it is difficult being a social worker during this time and especially with how limited resources can be for these communities that social workers typically work with. We've also had guest speakers for our Zoom classes to help us just get a better idea of what it's like to be a social worker and we actually interviewed a social worker who explained that this is a difficult time for not only students but also people that are in the professional field because this is a day-by-day thing. This is something that you just have to be able to acclimate to constantly and take precautions especially when you're working with other people. I definitely am impressed with the fact that your professor is having bringing guest speakers on to Zoom. I think that that's definitely an amazing way to enhance the campus experience and try to get the most out of your education for the time being. Do you think that this will impact your ability to graduate on time or how has this influenced the way in which you're planning for your future semesters? Yes. My plans for the following semesters have changed a little bit. Initially I was planning on taking summer school classes to get ahead which is what I did last summer and I really enjoyed being able to get ahead and also forced me to stay mentally stimulated throughout the summer and because of this pandemic a lot of those classes are online now and I really wanted to take communication classes and that's something that I think would be quite difficult to perform online with grading. UH is considering turning our semester into a past fail which is up for further discussion amongst the admin. I can definitely assure you that as a communications major yes communications classes are definitely a challenge to be conducted online but it can be done. You mentioned earlier some of the challenges of acclimating back to home life. How have your classmates been coping especially those who have had to move back home on the mainland or to other countries? Are professors accounting the time difference perhaps? Some of the classes the professors are considering time differences such as posting assignments online at the beginning of the week and making it do at the end of the week but all of our classes for Zoom are synced up to our current schedule so it's all in Hawaii time. Many people believe that just having that online campus experience is extremely crucial towards the college experience and adopting the academic mindset. So overall how do you think that being in a campus setting impacts having an academic mindset? Being on campus and being surrounded by other students has definitely encouraged me to go to class because I am forming those friendships and relationships with others and we're just able to hold each other accountable more. However when you're at home you this is quite literally what I do I roll out of bed open my laptop and I'm in the classroom but mentally I'm not completely there because there are numerous distractions and I don't get that same encouragement from my peers. You also mentioned that you've had to move back home. Has UH perhaps provided any resources or any structure on the moving out process or helping you guys move back home? Yes our student housing services has acknowledged the current situation and has offered students the opportunity to move out of their housing whenever they choose to without being marked as an early checkout. We are being offered a refund which is very helpful especially now and considering how expensive housing can be for students. For other students they do have the choice to stay in their dorms if they would choose to but their housing situation has changed from the typical buffet and easy access to food to only certain times of the day and it has to be takeout so resources are definitely limited for those students that choose to stay behind. As for the structure wise the student housing services definitely has been helpful to those students that do choose to move out and have made the move out process very easy. Well thank you for sharing more about that with us Kyla. I think that definitely during this time it's important to practice mindfulness especially about the unique challenges that we didn't expect to occur quite at the time that they did. In a moment we will actually be taking a short break. Again I'm Grace Lottick communications major at Hawaii Pacific University and interned here at Think Tech. You are watching Educating Ourselves in These Difficult Times on Think Tech Hawaii with my special guest Kyla Baker. We will be back shortly. Aloha I'm Lillian Cumick host of Lillian's Vegan World the show where we talk about veganism and the plant-based diet located in Honolulu Hawaii. I'm a vegan chef and cooking instructor and I have lots of information to share with you about how awesome this plant-based diet is so do tune in every second Thursday from 1 p.m. Aloha. Back to Educating Ourselves in These Difficult Times on Think Tech Hawaii. I'm Grace Lottick communications major at Hawaii Pacific University and intern here at Think Tech. My special guest today is Kyla Baker a social work and pre-law student and sailing athlete at UH Manoa. We will be exploring how coronavirus has impacted the college experience and what college life looks like today in the midst of a global pandemic. Thank you for sharing more about your experience with us Kyla. I think that this has been a challenging time for all of us and it's interesting to see how this pandemic has affected college culture and the academic mindset being away from a campus setting. You were mentioning earlier some of the struggles of maintaining these social relationships as a result of having to move back home. So what kind of strategies have you been implemented to stay in touch with campus culture? Yes so my roommate and I talk quite frequently we are really close. We take time out of our day to FaceTime and talk to each other. We even play games on our phones against each other. Her and I and a really close friend of ours have also agreed that every day we're going to take time to talk to each other while we're working out together just so that we are able to maintain that bond. Do you think that this pandemic has somewhat impeded on solidifying friendships towards the end especially of your first year living on campus? Yes it definitely has been difficult. Like I said earlier I'm more of an in person kind of person and I just enjoy that real interaction with other people and talking to somebody through screen at times can be difficult and isn't exactly what I would want for anybody. I think everybody deserves to interact in person and just really build that bond. Many people argue that the social aspect of college is just as important as the academic side of it if not more. Has UH transitioned any of its social gatherings to an online format? No all social gatherings that UH Manoa had for student body has been postponed or cancelled and I think that's for the best of our community especially with how many students are at UH. I think that's definitely challenging. At HPU we've actually implemented ways to continue to have social gatherings online so for example we have video game tournaments hosted online. We actually also have Zumba and cardio exercises in an online format as well where we can zoom in and do exercise together. We've also implemented other things like having conferences and guest speakers similar to your college class experience so I definitely do think that it's a little surprising that UH being as large of a school as it is hasn't shifted any of its social gatherings to an online format. Overall shifting back to your home life that we were discussing earlier what have been the primary challenges of acclimating going back to home life especially after having this newfound experience and independence of living on your own on campus? That is a very good question. I was actually just talking to my parents about that because in the future year or future semesters I do hope to be living on my own once again. Being back at home has been helpful because I do have the support from my parents academically and it's been quite an awakening. I had to move out of my dorm in two days and bring everything back home that I had slowly taken over the last semester and a half to my dorm and now it's my sister especially had an awakening because her and I do share a room and so when I told her I'm moving back home she did not like that because she also was able to find that independence and that joy and having that alone time especially in our small room but I think now being back home I'm able to develop that relationship with my sister before she goes off to college in the coming year. It's been we're getting used to it we're is forcing us to work on our communication more for my entire family not just myself and my sister but it should be interesting to see how this next month and a half goes. For sure I think that this is definitely an opportune time for people to work on their relationships with their family. I think that we can often get caught in the hustle and bustle of life and just sometimes forget to pause in the moment and to truly relish those around us and appreciate the support that we have from our family members. We also mentioned earlier that you're a sailing athlete at UH Manoa so how has this changed the athletic season for UH? Has it perhaps postponed scholarships recruitment programs? How are games being conducted now? All right so the NCAA has canceled the entire spring season. A lot of seniors are pretty upset about that and it was definitely difficult for student athletes to receive that news. Thankfully the student athletic program at UH Manoa has offered on campus counseling sessions and even through Zoom to just talk with those that are in the athletic program about this and recently actually the NCAA granted that all spring sports be granted another season. However this does bring up different concerns for seniors that are graduating and seniors who might not be able to afford going back to school and it does impact their scholarships. It varies case to case in sport to sport however for myself it didn't really impact me initially but it is nice to hear that we do get a season back. So overall how do you think that this pandemic has impacted your relationships with your teammate and overall how are you still conducting training sessions? How are you still staying in shape for the upcoming season? All student athletic programs have been canceled for the school the remainder of the school year. We're not really doing anything to stay in shape so it's important that we do take that independence and that responsibility to take care of ourselves for our sailing. It is a great way to practice social distancing because it is something you often do on your own. I know that my coach has been having his kids go out every now and then and train on their own and I think it's important that this situation shouldn't discourage you from practicing your sport for something that you're so passionate about because you know it's a great way to pass time especially if you can go and hit a volleyball in the backyard for if you sail like me you can go for a quick sail out or something of you know if you have a hoop at home you can shoot some basketballs and it it's just a great way for you to just recuperate and find that time to relax. It definitely is saddening to lose such a crucial part of the college experience. College sports especially are so vastly popular in the United States and I know that many people have been experiencing disappointment as a result of the cancellations of these seasons. Something that you mentioned that really stood out to me was the idea of having responsibility for ourselves and I think as college students emerging into the adult world I think we definitely do learn a better grasp of the concept of responsibility in our everyday lives. So from your perspective how do you think that college students can contribute towards the success of flattening the curve for the coronavirus pandemic? I know that many of college students think that we're somehow invincible because most of us are very young and healthy. So what do you think our role is in helping to flatten the curve and how can we exercise thoughtfulness for those around us that may not be as privileged to be of youth and of good health? So definitely prior to this I would go out whenever I wanted to spend time with whoever I wanted to and there are definitely no repercussions for what I did if I were being responsible of course but I think it's important for us to take those precautions such as wearing masks and being sure to stay inside. I know a lot of college students that have come home from school and as soon as they get home they go to the beach and they spend time with friends but as Governor E. Gay recently implemented that we must have a 14-day quarantine before we interact with others and with that being said I think it's important that we listen to that because living on such a small island it does spread very easily. We live in a community where everybody's family everybody takes care of each other and now instead of going over to somebody's house and taking care of them physically I think it's important that the way of taking care of others now has changed from staying at home you know to staying at home and just being able to help flatten that curve. I think the Hawaii especially is a unique environment because we have so many kupuna on the island and we definitely have tight-knit relationships with everybody no matter what part of the island that you're from. In what ways do you think that this pandemic has shifted the younger generation's perspective towards mortality? It definitely has been a wake-up call. I think that beforehand a lot of people didn't really consider how easily germs and viruses can spread. It definitely wasn't on my mind at the time and now I have to be a lot more cognizant when I'm out going grocery shopping I'm being sure to wipe down everything that I touch and going home my mom reminds me that even though it's in a packaging it still can be contaminated with this virus and so now we're extra careful and extra aware of our life our daily life and I think that really does put our health into perspective and forces us to prioritize it more. For sure I think that this definitely challenges us to question our role in society and how we can better contribute towards the flattening of the curve of this pandemic. I think that definitely as college students we're often just caught up in our own lives and we don't necessarily think about those around us but I think this pandemic definitely does challenge us to be more thoughtful and mindful of how our actions can affect those around us no matter how minor they can seem and I think that this lesson is definitely important for us to carry on even beyond the time of the pandemic understanding that we definitely do play a role in society no matter how much sometimes we may think that we're not important we definitely do all contribute to an overall part of it. Thank you for sharing your perspective with us today Kyla it was definitely unique to hear how college culture and college life has changed as a result of shifting to an online culture and I definitely think that it's important for us to work in conjunction with one another as a result of the challenges that have occurred due to the pandemic. I think that it was unexpected for the majority of us but I think that as a community there are definite lessons that can be learned as we work together and as a family to help eradicate this illness. Thank you again for watching educating ourselves in these difficult times on Think Tech Hawaii. I'm Grace Laudic, communications major at Hawaii Pacific University and intern here at Think Tech. If you would like to see more coverage on the intersection of coronavirus and education my series airs every other Thursday at noon. Thank you Kyla for being a wonderful guest in our show today. I hope that Kyla and I were able to shed some light on the unique challenges presented by coronavirus and areas in which others can be of support to college students who are struggling with a transition of college life to an online format. We are both hopeful that we can all achieve a successful transition to a new normal. Aloha.