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https://www.rgj.com/story/news/educa...ad/2218493002/
Apparently this county in Nevada has replaced snow makeup days with digital learning days. Apparently it has been alarmingly welcomed excepted by a few people who complains not everyone has internet access.
Interestingly California's neighbor Nevada did not follow California's example abolishing school makeup days which CA did since 1990. Thus 99% of students in California making up days lost seems a foreign concept. The only exception is those living in places like Lake Tahoe that average a number of days off a year due to snow.
While what happens in California often doesn't stay in California this is one of the exceptions that did not become a national fad. I would be curious how many other states have this blanket no make up day policy where days lost due to force majeure such as dangerous weather/fire are automatically waived from the 180 days requirement. Though do students in those states actually get one or two more days to prepare for finals? Are districts required to make up days if the state orders the schools closed via a travel ban on state highways in which no school bus, principal, teacher, student are allowed to travel to school?
Do you believe that digital learning is a great alternative? Or do you think extending the school day for a number of days with each period proportionally longer better?
In NYS, public schools are required to offer around 180 (plus or minus a few days) of instruction per year. School districts tend to build in buffer days in case of cold/snow days, but if they go over, the school year will be extended. I can see merit to this plan, but if its only a few days less than the mandatory minimum, I think its a bit overkill to extend the year.
Our local schools here in Tn build in buffer days so they have a good bit of slack to play with.
Honestly around here, where the average days missed is very low, I don't think days missed really makes any difference in the year so I dont think makeup days are needed. This could very well be different elsewhere. The last 4-6 weeks of school are basically down time anyway. Once state testing is done, they are just filling butts in seat time.
Although someone made light of it the lack of internet is an issue, and not just in low income areas. I taught in a very middle/upper middle class school and likely 20% of the students didn't have home internet access. Most were financial reasons but some were no computers in the home (or books either but that's a different conversation) and some kids were just plain forbidden to use the internet.
In schools where the kids take home school supplied meals for the weekend internet access doesn't tend to be a priority.
Mother nature will throw poor conditions our way from time to time. It's not something to get uneasy about. Unless an area has chronic problems - which would need to be addressed some other way, such as extending the school year - there's no need to get uptight over a day or two missed. A special surprise day or two off is a blessing, like a bonus day off from work. It's good for fun and morale, which balances with work and the nose-to-the-grindstone. Sounds like some want to raise rigid tightwads, constantly fretting over the balance of the scales.
I couldn't agree more with your statements.
Interestingly its one of the very few things the state of California has done right.
In California at least since 1990 only school districts on the shore of Lake Tahoe, mammoth lakes, or other high mountain towns who regularly get school cancellations due to harsh weather would be expected to build in makeup days and they have the right to decide to waive or makeup at the end of the year should there be an abnormal amount of cancellations. If school gets cancelled in most other districts around the state its waived automatically. This includes the freak low elevation snowfall, flooding, fog, smoke, mudslide, fire, quake, or other dangerous weather condition.
In most other contract laws force majeure is an exemption from contract liability. This includes Universities and Colleges whether public or private. Therefore theoretically only if school is cancelled due to a mess up in the districts control should it be required to be made up. This is particularly true if the district and its schools are forced to close when a state or local shuts down highways or streets under their jurisdiction and school buses and district vehicles are forbidden to travel.
Though schools should address what to do with the learning curriculum that may be missed or cut short due to an unexpected interruption. Digital learning is one way to do it. Another way is to provide printouts for those who don't have Internet access. Extending each class period by several minutes a day may be another.
I be curious though how many other countries do make up days for schools due to weather cancellations or other cancellations? It appears I know people from several other countries while they reported school cancellations they never reported having to make days up later in the year.
I currently live in NC and our county builds in buffer days though if the Governor declares a state of emergency and we get the day off we don't have to make those particular days. When the hurricanes came through our area last fall, our schools were out for a couple of days. We only had to make up one day and I think we were out 4. We got snow a couple of months later and were out for 2.5 days and we only had to make up one day there. The kids have to be in school 180 days. Our county HS's had time (2 minutes) added to the day for the rest of the year and 30 minutes on exam days so that they would make sure that if we get any other inclement weather they will be covered.
I grew up in IN and my HS now has e-learning days. I think it's a fantastic idea. They get a lot of days off due to weather in the winter and without these they'd be going to school into June (They get out in May as they start towards the beginning of August).
We have enough instructional hours (112.5 hours) beyond what the state requires that we are able to build in the equivalent of 18 days. The 19th day would have to be made up. It’s highly unlikely we would miss that many days.
https://www.rgj.com/story/news/educa...ad/2218493002/
Apparently this county in Nevada has replaced snow makeup days with digital learning days. Apparently it has been alarmingly welcomed excepted by a few people who complains not everyone has internet access.
Interestingly California's neighbor Nevada did not follow California's example abolishing school makeup days which CA did since 1990. Thus 99% of students in California making up days lost seems a foreign concept. The only exception is those living in places like Lake Tahoe that average a number of days off a year due to snow.
While what happens in California often doesn't stay in California this is one of the exceptions that did not become a national fad. I would be curious how many other states have this blanket no make up day policy where days lost due to force majeure such as dangerous weather/fire are automatically waived from the 180 days requirement. Though do students in those states actually get one or two more days to prepare for finals? Are districts required to make up days if the state orders the schools closed via a travel ban on state highways in which no school bus, principal, teacher, student are allowed to travel to school?
Do you believe that digital learning is a great alternative? Or do you think extending the school day for a number of days with each period proportionally longer better?
What do you all think?
No, snow or school makeup days should not be abolished or reformed nationwide because school attendance laws are established by each state and there is no need for the Federal government to be involved.
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"Let this year be over..."
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Location: Where my bills arrive
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Here in Virginia they plan in so many snow day but this year we will exceed them so they take previous workday/holidays and make them instructional days. I have seen the "add 15 minutes per day" garbage used and it does nothing other than meet instructional hours. The bigger issue is how frequently closures are being called, are these kids going to melt if there are flakes in the air or wet roads, it has gotten ridicules.
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