During her free time, sophomore Mahlet Ayele is one of many AHS students that sign into Netflix to catch up on the latest shows. When trying to watch Orange is the New Black last Friday, she found out that the popular entertainment streaming site was blocked.

In an effort to conserve bandwidth for SOL testing, network administrators have blocked access to Netflix.

The negative effects of not having access to Netflix are being felt by many students and  teachers. Teachers often rely on Netflix to incorporate educational films and documentaries  to provide visual perspectives on topics that students are currently learning in class.

Students in health were unable to watch a movie as originally planned by health and physical education teacher Dave O’Hara.

“We were suppose to watch a movie [on obesity] in health, but his Netflix wouldn’t work,” sophomore Ashley Giddings said.

In addition, some English 10 teachers had to change their plans after they were unable show documentaries on Mt. Everest. Sophomores would have had the opportunity to gain more knowledge on Everest as a companion to their unit on the novel Into Thin Air.

Despite many complaints on Netflix’s restriction, some lucky students like Giddings have been able to log in to watch their favorite shows.

At the same time, Giddings believes that students are being overly dramatic about the whole situation.

“I don’t think it really matters, it’s not like we come to school to watch Netflix. If a teacher wants to watch a movie, they can bring in a DVD,” Giddings said.

On the other hand, students can always find alternative ways to watch shows by turning to Hulu or YouTube.

“What’s the point in blocking [Netflix]? People can find other ways of watching stuff so I think it’s unnecessary,” Ayele said.

With that in mind, the decision to block Netflix is likely useless as students will consequently clog the Wi-Fi trying to watch videos on other sites.

The network administration has stated that it’s unclear whether access will be available once again.