Hinsdale South Remote Learning 'Feels Like School'

HINSDALE, IL — Since August, students in Hinsdale High School District 86 have been attending remotely. One school administrator says that students are telling her that "it really feels like school."

During last week's school board meeting, Hinsdale South Principal Arwen Pokorny Lyp said students say remote learning has improved.

"I have had students say how impressed they are with just the vast difference with what they experienced in the spring and what they are experiencing now," the principal said. "The students are great by saying, 'We're not blaming anyone about the spring. It was an emergency. It is what it is.'"

Pokorny Lyp complimented both teachers and students for their ability to "completely transform for the fall." She said students have told her "it really feels like school."

She said they also have told her, "I feel like I'm making connections with my peers. Even though I'm a freshman, I met friends on Zoom, and I am able to socially interact and feel like I'm social, even though I'm remote."

The first Hinsdale South and Central students are expected to start attending school in person Monday. Students are being divided into four groups, with a quarter of the student body attending each day.

Under the plan, while a quarter of students would attend in person, the rest would take part in the same classes remotely.