Everyone has mixed feelings on freshman year. It’s a huge step to reaching the ultimate goal: graduation. But the transition from middle school can be tough. I mean, first of all, it is a new building. Second, we have to make tough decisions on classes we want to take. Third is the use of technology at North Allegheny.

The move to 9th grade entails an important change from Apple iPads to Dell laptops. Now, many people think this transition is easy and even better, but I personally enjoyed the iPads. As a senior and someone who has had experience with these computers for over three years, I have many mixed opinions on them. 

It is important to acknowledge that students in many other districts across the country are not able access the technology that we NA students may take for granted. To be part of a school district that allows me to learn this way is something I am very grateful for. Our school has done a fantastic job at providing us with the proper resources needed to be successful in school. We have some of the best technology staff here at our school, so I cannot stress enough how fortunate I am to attend a school like North Allegheny.

But I do think that our school does rely too much on our computers, and it sometimes puts the students grades at risk. For example, some of us may experience WIFI problems at home, and due to connectivity issues, our assignments may not be able to get completed. The stress that this creates on students is undeniable because our grade is then in jeopardy. The effort to finish our work is there, but sometimes we aren’t given a pass if connection problems prevented completion. 

Truly, my computer has been extremely useful. Nevertheless, it regularly shuts down, even when it is at full charge. I know I’m hardly alone in saying that it is exhausting to know that even when you connect your charger to your computer for the whole night, there still is a chance of it dying. Also, my computer glitches at random times for no reason, and there is nothing more frustrating than having to postpone my productivity because of a computer. 

Now, you may be asking: What would be your way of fixing this problem? Should we go to old-fashioned paper tests and assignments instead of relying on the technology? Of course not.

However, I do support balancing technology with paper assignments and tests. In fact, maybe the school can put out a survey to see what students and parents would prefer. The results may be surprising.