Brentwood School - Brentwoodian 2020

10 Hong Hong Kong was handed back to China in 1997 by the British, and that was where the one country two system law was enforced. Fifty years later, China will gain full control over Hong Kong again. Protests started back in 2014, where Joshua Wong led citizens out to the streets blocking main roads; this movement was known as the umbrella movement. But in the past year, due to the government’s proposed introduction of the extradition law, protests have started again with gatherings of up to 1.7 million protesters (Huge crowds rally peacefully in Hong Kong, 2019), nearly 2/7ths of Hong Kong’s total population. Protesters were asking for five demands; withdrawal of the extradition bill, an inquiry into alleged police brutality, retracting the classification of protesters as ‘rioters’, amnesty for arrested protesters and finally the resignation of Carrie Lam (Chief executive of Hong Kong) (Tsui-Kai). As I entered my final IGCSE year rumours were spread of schools closing and of online schooling due to the protests. The mere thought of this scared me as I worried about learning the rest of the syllabus and giving my full attention during online learning. I was yet to know that this was how my whole year would be. During November of that same year, it was announced that schools would close due to the escalating protests as travel to school was disrupted and the protests became more violent. Making us get used to using this new application called Zoom, many of us were unfamiliar with it, caused many difficulties on the technology side. It also made it harder for students to focus and teachers to have more interactive classes to make sure students were online and understanding the content. The protests did not just affect my school life but also my relationship with friends and family. Because of the escalation of violence through the months, it was unsafe to be near protests when they occurred, mainly because police used tear gas and rubber bullets, and they carried live ammunition. It limited the times I could see friends, impacting my mental health as I became more confined to my home. Additionally, I wasn’t able to meet up with some of my school friends as we only saw each other during lessons or at school. I also spent more time with my family, meaning we had to adapt to everyone being in the house at once. My daily routine soon became waking up to watching the news about the protests and then joining my Zoom calls. It felt like a repetitive cycle of days, where my routine became more limited. As my mock exams approached, the work I would have to put in became more apparent. I felt anxious and overwhelmed as I had to catch up with much of the syllabus as I found it difficult to concentrate and understand with online school, even with the full support of my teachers. After the mocks, the protests continued. Protests didn’t cease until COVID-19 began to have its first outbreaks in Hong Kong on 23rd January 2020. This happened because of the enforcement bans of large gatherings. Due to Hong Kong’s experience with SARS in 2003, COVID rules and guidelines quickly became very strict. As the School approached Chinese New Year half-term break, it had reached about 21 cases and one reported death. Hong Kong’s population density is very high, and most live on top of each other in apartments, which made the Covid-19 epidemic even more easy to spread. The maximum number of cases was 5,114 (“COVID-19 Thematic Website, Together, We Fight The Virus, Home”). The Hong Kong government was quick to enforce guidelines and at one point, limited gatherings to groups of six. You would also be looked at if you walked down the street without a mask as nearly 100% of the population were wearing them. As Hong K ng Kong was impacted so much and COVID-19 was still very new to the rest of the world, it was decided that schools would go back to online learning until further notice in February. Going back to online learning was challenging as we were approaching our IGCSE’s, with most of us not completing syllabuses yet. Because of this, I was overcome with emotions, making it harder for me to focus. It also made it even harder to have face-to-face contact with friends, which I believe is vital to students’ health and welfare. It is crucial to have this sort of contact as it allows us to relax and provides a break from our studies. Although our lockdown wasn’t as severe as some countries, we were still able to go on hikes and restaurants if we practised social distancing. It affected us greatly as months passed by in lockdown. As the dates for our exams approached and no indication of whether the exams would be cancelled, we began to revise alone with the odd online study groups. As England began to feel the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic, there was talk of the exams getting cancelled. However, for us, this left us unsure, as we were uncertain if we should still be revising. For some, they continued their revision, but for others, they began to kick into summer holiday mode. Cambridge and Edexcel cancelled the exams in March; consequently, the stress of the teachers gathering evidence for our grades began. Students attending local schools had to sit their exams still social distancing. So international schools received mini examinations and tasks with short deadlines as well; the following weeks of that news overwhelmed many. In those weeks, I became wholly concerned about my education and learning. I began to feel more sleep-deprived as I worked into the late hours of the night. As the deadlines approached and work was handed in, there was not much to do other than to wait and anticipate the method of grading and if we would be able to receive the results we aspired to.