Cold and rainy weather has been a common occurrence at Carlmont High School in the past few months due to the long winter months, and this chilly weather has brought a variety of illnesses that have affected students’ lives and academics.
For many students, being sick is detrimental because of the symptoms and the academic workload that tends to pile up.
Students are forced to decide between going to school sick, prolonging their sickness, and actively jeopardizing the health of other students or staying at home and falling behind academically.
“Usually, if I’m sick but don’t have a fever, I’ll try to go to school because I hate making up the work I miss. But if I have a fever, I usually stay home,” said Noah Franklin, a junior at Carlmont.
Even if students decide not to attend school, they can either do their homework while feeling sick or wait until they get better.
I was sick recently, and I felt so bad and tired I just wanted to rest and sleep. But I didn’t want to have to make up all my work once I started going back to school, I just forced myself to do some of it.
— Zan Hasan
However, if students decide to do all their work once they get better, it swiftly and heftily piles up.
“I was sick recently, and I felt so bad and tired I just wanted to rest and sleep. But since I didn’t want to have to make up all my work once I started going back to school, I just forced myself to do some of it,” said Zan Hasan, a Carlmont sophomore.
Most teachers give students an assignment extension based on the missed days.
“My policy for students making up missed assignments from an excused absence is that they get the number of days they missed to make up the assignment,” said Ryan Chun, a Carlmont math teacher.
The biggest issue for students who miss school due to sickness is often making up the exams.
While most teachers allow students to make up quizzes and tests easily, other more advanced classes have rules regarding students’ ability to retake or be excused from missed exams.
“One of my classes only excuses us from two missing quizzes a semester,” said Rohan Yadavali, a Carlmont sophomore.
Many teachers strive to streamline the makeup process for sick students, aiding them in swiftly catching up on missed exams.
“If a student misses a test or quiz because of an excused absence, I’ll have them make it up as soon as possible, but it all depends on the situation,” Chun said.
As spring approaches and winter comes to a close, sicknesses are expected to be less common at Carlmont, but students will still need to find ways to manage their workload if they are struck with an illness.
“Being sick is an enormous hassle, but I can usually manage the workload if I pace myself well,” Hasan said.
