2020 has been a year full of uncertainty, with the school year being even more uncertain. Leading to a question many of us are asking, just what is going to happen this year?

The 2020-2021 school year has had an uneasy start. Everything can change at a drop of a hat, causing students and staff at PLHS to make their own predictions on what could come. The most theorized topic being the future of learning due to COVID-19.

“I predict we will go remote if and only if they can’t staff the school,” PLHS teacher Mrs. Hubert said. “If there is a staff breakout and people get sick that way, that’s when we’ll go remote.”

On the other hand, some believe 100 percent in person learning won’t last with or without a COVID-19 breakout among staff.

“I think we’re definitely going to switch to a mix of remote and 50% capacity,” sophomore Meredith Koehler commented.

If the school does go fully remote, some people believe the way students learn will be majorly affected.

“I think student learning will definitely go down because there are too many distractions and barriers when people are doing remote learning,” Hubert said. ” And kids, as much as they don’t want it at times, need the structure of school to stay on task and learn.”

An additional topic of theorization is whether or not the situation with COVID-19 will improve.

“I think it’s ultimately going to get better,” freshman Alicia Demmon said.

On the other side, many have less confidence in how the pandemic will turn out, Koehler saying, “It’s definitely going to get worse before it gets better.”

COVID-19 is not the only subject theorized about, but also general mental health going forward.

“I think that the day is just a little bit more stressful,” Hubert said. “Especially if you are a student with anxiety, which a lot of students are and actually a lot of our teachers too, it’s just like one more thing and it really weighs on people.” 

Another prediction, besides COVID-19’s effect and remote learning, is how the election is going to affect the school.

“I think the presidential election is going to impact communities because I think people are going to have a hard time accepting the results one way or the other,” Hubert said. “So the presidential election will, unfortunately, be like a little shadow that hangs over us.”

In addition to the general impact of the election, some wonder about how it will affect student relations. 

“During quarantine, everyone got a lot more political. There’s going to be a lot of divide with many different political beliefs,” Koehler said.

Even though it’s impossible to predict what could happen this year, especially during these uncertain times, students and staff will continue to wonder about the question on everybody’s mind, just what’s next?