This week, we bring you three stories of mishaps, mistakes and other such shenanigans that students have experienced during online classes.
During quarantine, our sophomore and junior editors started to contribute to a monthly playlist where we would all put our five favorite songs for the month in a playlist. Below, all of the contributors posted their favorite song and a little explanation on why they chose it.
Imagine if, one day, the students of Miami University woke up to find an email from President Crawford saying that Miami would be closing after 211 years of being an active university. No more Miami classes. No more Miami professors. No more Miami organizations. No more Miami, period. This is the fate that Urbana University, located in Urbana, Ohio, was met with this year.
The 2020 MTV Video Music Awards (VMAs) took place this past Sunday, and to say I was on edge going in would be an understatement.
Everyone knows that the first day of class is the most boring one. You hear about the syllabus, attendance policies and when office hours are. But imagine logging onto Canvas and hitting play on your first video lecture to see your professor … in a dinosaur costume?
With a quiet campus and mandates against large gatherings, Miami’s community looks very different this fall. Many of the university’s clubs have found unique ways to keep their members motivated and participating even with changing regulations.
Greek life at Miami revolves around a sense of family between the brothers and sisters of the organization. That connection is now being challenged by the limitations on gathering and face-to-face contact.
Densely-packed bars, dance floors sticky from spilled drinks, streets crowded with jubilant Miamians — all hallmarks of a typical weekend in Oxford. And up until a few months ago, seen week in and week out. Now, nearly six months after Oxford’s bar scene shut down, it’s coming back to life.
Many upperclassmen are returning to Oxford for the fall semester, but with them come some lingering concerns about the price of online learning and anxiety about student health and safety.
Last fall semester, Miami University professors stood at the front of a classroom, leading discussions, fielding questions and presenting lectures in person. This fall semester, that scene looks quite different due to a sudden change in plans: online classes for the first five weeks.
Twin XL sheets? Check. Shower caddy? Shower shoes? Check. Dorm decorations? Check. Move-in date? Postponed.
Similar to most people, COVID-19 impacted the plans I had for the summer. I found myself at home, bored, and baking way too much banana bread for my own good. So when my dad, a high school teacher, suggested we go on a camping road trip, I was already halfway out of the door. On July 1, we hit the road in our trusty old Dodge Caravan with a stack of U.S. maps and an open schedule. There is no better place to socially distance than the great outdoors; we were armed with masks, sanitizer, and even a pop-up shower to stay safe during the pandemic.
People seem to be bummed about this whole “pandemic” thing, but I think it is better to look at it in a positive light.
Zoom calls and livestreams on Instagram and Facebook have become part of most people’s daily routines, taking the place of lectures, meetings, special events and even workout sessions.
After spending over a month alone in his one-bedroom apartment, James Carter was shocked to find his child-hood imaginary friend, Davey, sitting on his sofa last Monday.
If you’re like me, you hate to admit you spend the majority of your day lying in bed and scrolling through all your social media in a never-ending cycle. It’s embarrassing, but you feel a sense of comfort because you remember it’s become the norm with many other students while you continue to check your friends' Snapchat stories. I mean, how else are you going to keep up with everyone while maintaining social distancing?
Junior Sarah Pankratz, a psychology major on the pre-med track, started writing letters to her friends during quarantine. She picked up the habit when she worked at a summer camp and couldn’t use her phone often. She wanted to communicate with her friends without always being on her phone.
“Live every moment to the fullest and take advantage of every opportunity to spend time with your friends because before you know it, the four years will fly by and/or could come to an early end.” – Morgan Tillery, Class of 2020
Perhaps the greatest benefit of being a younger sibling is having the opportunity to learn from your older siblings' mistakes, or more specifically, their ex-boyfriends' mistakes.