The Virtual Landscape
Most Unique Graduation Venue
Minecraft regained popularity over quarantine. Because people could not physically go outside, Minecraft became a way to virtually hang out with friends online, or even meet new people. One major problem during the pandemic was that students could no longer attend their graduation ceremonies, one of the most significant events in their school careers during which they celebrate their achievements with friends and say their goodbyes. Colleges such as U.C. Berkeley held virtual graduation ceremonies on Minecraft in order to create some sort of graduation experience for their students. Diplomas are handed out in the form of sunflower seeds and everything is built to mimic an actual graduation. Students even recreated their college campuses online so that they could continue to socialize virtually with other students on campus. Minecraft has become the next best thing since students could no longer go out or see their peers.
Of all the ways the coronavirus pandemic has undermined the conventions of normal life, perhaps none is as cruel as the separation of seriously ill patients and their loved ones, now mandated at hospitals around the world.
Kate hafner, 2020
Staying Connected on Hospital Bed
Once people become hospitalized, they face a concerning issue: will I ever see my loved ones again? Because hospitals can not admit loved ones of coronavirus patients due to the fear of spreading the virus, patients are not able to physically be with their family members. To combat this devastating reality, Johns Hopkins has equipped all of its patients with tablets to not only keep them connected to family members but also as a form of comfort. The tablet includes apps to video chat with the patient’s families as well as update them about the patients’ medical condition. Through these tablets, patients can still feel the love from their family members and feel less alone as they await trails on their hospital beds.
Continuing Traditions
College decision day is usually a big tradition among high school seniors, who come together in school and take pictures while wearing college merchandise. These pictures mark a significant moment in their career in which they are choosing the next path they will take in life with their friends. This usually occurs after many stressful months of filling out college applications. Because students can’t take these pictures together at school as a result of quarantine, they took pictures together on Zoom instead. This is another way that people have found ways to stay connected and maintain certain traditions online. Oftentimes, zoom pictures like these will be saved and uploaded on social media or stored on their computers for years to come.
Picture Credit: Paula Sweeney, May 6, 2020, lejournallive.com
No Classroom? No Problem.
Because of the pandemic, schools are closed and students are asked to stay home. This means many of them can’t meet to do activities like sing together in person. These MIT students find a creative way to overcome this problem. This video shows how these students still manage to synchronize their voices and bond over a shared interest of singing over zoom. Despite living in different time zones and having varying levels of audio quality, they managed to successfully compose these videos. By doing so, these students show how even if everyone is in quarantine, these group activities can still continue. Singing and composing these videos by working together online also gives these students an opportunity to stay close and connected with each other. This is also a reality for many other students, for which Zoom has become the main way to work together on activities.
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