During the COVID-19 lockdown, Kendrick Barrera, a first-year Liberal Arts major, was stuck in the house with his younger sisters and brother, who disturbed him frequently, while he did his college work online.
“[My siblings] have to get up early for classes. When I had a night class they would be too noisy or come in and out of my room,” Barrera says.
His siblings bothered him during classes from the start of his first year in Fall 2020 into the start of his second year in Fall 2021.
“It made me want to hide more in my room and lock my door so that I could escape and forget everyone in order to prioritize my school work”, says Barrera.
According to a study done in 2021 by the Pew Research Center about the psychological impact on relationships from the COVID-19 lockdown, 89% of Americans said they had at least one negative change in their lives, while 73% said they experienced an unexpected uprising.
One person from the Pew study said, “Even for an introvert there’s such a thing as too much isolation.” Another said, “Life has slowed down and brought family and friends closer.”
A VOICE survey of 30 students showed how these statistics fit with our own MCCC community.
When students were asked if the people they were living with during lockdown made them anxious and made their work stressful, 23% said they strongly agree, 27% were neutral, and 23% said they disagree.
The Pew study didn’t focus specifically on the education impact of lockdown, but students reported that it did.
Barrera says, “My grades were better the first semester over the second semester…I didn’t get any bad grades, it was just more like being burned out because you’re always stuck at home.”
Elizabeth Baur, first-year Nursing major, however had different academic consequences.
“My grades plummeted. They were bad. I had no motivation, not a care in the world and I’m now currently trying to fix my GPA because of my previous bad grades.”
But the personal outcomes weren’t entirely bad.
In the same survey of MCCC students, 68% said they had a positive experience despite being stressed about work and family during the lockdown.
Sierra Azara, first-year nursing student, said “Being stuck in a house without the ability to work and get a place of my own really motivated me to go back to school and chase my dreams.”
Similarly, Francess Kumagutu, a second-year nursing major said lockdown had a positive impact on her. She spent the time living with two aunts and four cousins.
She said, “My aunty taught me how to cook some African foods and I love that because now I know how to make them.” She added, “I think everyone started talking more about their feelings and watching tv together and connecting with one another.”
Her experiences during the lockdown allowed her family to create a deeper connection.
Kumagutu said, “I feel like during the lockdown it brought my family closer where we talk things out and engage more in having conversations instead of being on our electronics all the time. Lockdown was a good experience and bad experience but I wouldn’t trade the experiences or lesson lockdown taught me.”
