Teachers Return to the Classroom in Las Vegas

Bo Brusco | March 14, 2021 (5-minute read)

Online learning has been the new normal in Nevada since the onset of the pandemic. Armed with a vaccine, teachers are preparing to set foot in the classroom again. A 12th Grade English Language Arts teacher at Shadow Ridge High School in Las Vegas shares his optimism for the future. 

Six Months Later

After six months of online instruction, the teachers in Las Vegas, Nevada, have returned to their classrooms in preparation for schools reopening. According to their website, the Clark County School District plans to have students back in the brick-and-mortar classroom on March 22nd, where class schedules will follow a “Hybrid Instructional Model” for the foreseeable future. 

“I, for one, am happy to be going back now that I’m vaccinated,” says 12th Grade English teacher, Mr. Cade Buer. “I’m really excited to have some semblance of schedule again.”

In the early morning of the second Friday of March, Mr. Buer began working diligently to make his classroom ready for his Seniors. Seemingly eager to be teaching in his own classroom again, Mr. Buer recounts what online learning has been like for the first half of the school year.

“Throughout this entire pandemic, I’ve felt, personally, pretty isolated,” he says. “My interaction with the staff as a whole has been very minimal.”

Mr. Cade Buer managing his virtual classroom from home in Las Vegas, Nevada, on March 12, 2021. (Photo: Bo Brusco)

Looking forward to the change of pace, Mr. Buer expresses his excitement about collaborating with the staff at Shadow Ridge High School again.

“I mean, it’ll be interesting to hear someone talk back to me, ya know?” he says jokingly. “It won’t just be me talking to myself anymore.”

Mr. Buer takes his first step back into his hallway after teaching online learning for six months in Las Vegas, Nevada on March 12, 2021. (Photo: Bo Brusco)

Reflecting on how others might feel about schools reopening, Mr. Buer strongly believes that this is a step in the right direction. “I understand that some people will be frustrated because it’s not as much as they’ve wanted; it might be less than they expected,” he says, “but I think it is important to take this baby step and at least show a commitment to normalcy.”

Knowing that this might not be the unanimous opinion, Mr. Buer continues saying, “and critics of returning to school right now maybe won’t initially appreciate that, but this is setting us up for next year, and at least putting it in people’s heads that, as far as we’re concerned, things are going to be normal for next school year.”