Wi-Fi: Most don’t know what to do without it. From calling, to texting, to doing school work, one just has to have it. When it comes to technology, Wi-Fi is a precious commodity. Unfortunately, North Atlanta students have lacked this critical asset recently. Try writing on a Google Doc, taking a test, or reading an article without Wi-Fi (spoiler: you can’t!). These actions have become strenuous tasks that many North Atlanta students are getting too comfortable with. NAHS students are ready to roll in new Wi-Fi and kick out the old. 

Last year on February 16, North Atlanta students made a return to the 11 story powerhouse on Northside Parkway. In addition to NAHS students’ return to the building, the scholars’ computers made a reemergence, and with these computers came the importance of having strong Wi-Fi. Sophomore Sebastian Montana said, “Last year the Wi-Fi was great, but this year it’s a completely different story.” 

Wi-Fi is a wireless network that helps to keep individuals connected to the internet, but just like any other type of technology, it has its faults. One of these faults is the number of people it can withstand at once without crashing. Now with almost 2,000 Dubs in the building, one could imagine the Wi-Fi is not performing exceptionally in keeping up with the students’ needs. Currently, the Wi-Fi status ranges from being fast, to being slow, or just not functioning at all. “Gosh, the internet is truly terrible. One day it took me 30 minutes just to get logged on to Google Classroom,” said senior Anna Yoder. 

North Atlanta High School is a place where teens of all backgrounds, stories, and dreams come to learn and better themselves. However, the issue of slow Wi-Fi is making teaching and learning much more difficult for students and teachers alike. Nevertheless, staff and students have found a way with many teachers resorting to older styles of teaching. Here’s a massive mind-blower: paper and pen. That’s right, many teachers have resorted to “old-fashioned” teaching as their way of conquering the slow internet. Sophomore Taylor Ryan, a student in AP World History teacher Caitlin Tripp’s class said, “Recently the internet has been pretty bad, so teachers have been giving us paper copies which I sort of prefer, honestly. In Mrs. Tripp’s class, for example, the Wi-Fi is so awful I can’t get any of my work done!” 

Recently, students have become overtaxed as their load of after-school work continues to climb because of wavering Wi-Fi. As students are not able to finish their classwork in school, many are coming home to piles of endless homework. “This slow internet has negatively affected me. I have to do so much of my work from school at home now, and believe me when I say my stress levels have shot through the roof.” said sophomore Dylan Toliver. 

While the internet seems to be a major inconvenience for the North Atlanta populace, the Dubs will (as they always do) find a way to forge through. Even if that means resorting to old-fashioned pen and paper, the resilient staff and students of North Atlanta will come out the other side better and more prepared than ever.