This week, we had several inches of snow. My school, along with many others around the country, opted out of in-person school. The weather dictated that it was best to avoid having students, families, and staff traveling on the roads. There is nothing new about this. Snow days are as old as public schools themselves. What is different about this for us is that we fell back on our massive Covid-19 technology and internet expansion and made this an e-learning day.
Many suburban schools already had e-learning days in place of snow days, but it was not something that an inner-city school would have been able to pull off prior to this year’s pandemic driven digital initiatives. I was excited to try this format. We have now done it. Here are the pros and cons for e-learning inclement weather days for any schools considering replicating the practice.
Pro: Students still get some practice and instruction.
Obviously the biggest positive around e-learning days vs traditional snow days is the fact that students are not sitting at home doing nothing. It may not be the same as being in the building, but there is still something constructive students can do at home via e-learning, and students need that practice.
Con: It still probably messes up your instructional plan.
While I was able to find something to do for students that was worthwhile, it wasn’t the EXACT lesson that I wanted to do with students had we been in person. So, it isn’t the same as having school just at home.
Pro: It keeps you from having to venture out in bad weather.
Schools seem to be reluctant to call snow days. Many times I find myself driving to work on ice, slipping and sliding, because nobody wants to make the call to cancel school. There is less guilt behind an e-learning day and less pressure for schools to still make people come in during inclement weather.
Con: Teachers with young children must pull double duty.
If the weather is really bad typically some daycares will be closed as well. On a regular snow day that doesn’t matter because teachers are at home with their kids anyway, but it’s different during e-learning. I have a 3-month-old baby that I could not drop off at childcare. She was most unconcerned with the class I had to teach and cried during my class forcing me to step away.
(It is worth noting that this particular problem was only a problem because my school has a Zoom structure where we deliver content. Some schools have students work on independent work during this time which would have been less of a problem with children.)
Pro: It keeps you from having makeup days in the summer.
The state counts e-learning days as regular school days. This means schools don’t have to run into the summer to meet the minimum required days for instruction.
Con: There is no guarantee everyone has power or internet.
As we have seen in Texas, weather causes problems outside of school buses and education. If the weather is bad enough to cancel school, it may be bad enough to leave your students or teachers without power or internet. That would make an e-learning day hard to pull off.
In the end, I am satisfied with the way my school’s e-learning snow day went. Obviously, I would not argue with an impromptu day off, but it was fine. Also, it remains to be seen how this would work in a situation where students are not familiar with the e-learning process as students were already in the habit and routine of logging on for instruction.
hello. i have mixed emotions about e learning. i do like the fact that i get to stay home but i do not like the zooms i have to attend. i also like the fact that the assignments are easy to complete but some require a partner, and everyone in My house is always busy.
I have mixed emotions about e learning days. I used to love them since it was a free day. But now that we have zoom, it’s a little more weird. With zoom, you don’t always have your things for the class. But with a snow day, you don’t need them. I like be8ng at home during e learning. But I also like being at school because it’s easier for me.
I have multiple different feelings about a snow day. One good think about a snow day is that you can just get the work done on your own pace and if you finish early you can have fun in the snow! One bad think about not having e-learning on a snow day is that you can play in the snow for the whole day but you have to make up that day in the summer when you could just get done with school early and have fun in snow without wasting 7 hours of a day in summer vacation. But overall I think we should still have e-learning on snow days.
There is a lot to talk about snow days like enjoying hot chocolate but when you do the assignments it’s not that bad but it takes awhile so. Think snow days are good because
You can have snow ball fights or build forts like a actual snow day but when you have E-learning it’s difficult to not go out side but I think E-learning on a snow day is good because people would just be sitting on there iPads all day playing games or on there devices so I think a snow day on E-learning is good for learning so you have something to do during the winter or snow day or snow days. ⛄️❄️
I don’t know how I feel i like E leaning days cause there fun,not much work,and I get to stay at home but it’s hard to learn and some things require two people and my family is busy so it is hard to do that. Though I used to love doing E learning because I could get it done fast and easy but with zooms it’s a lot harder because teachers can show us what to do and how to do it though i love to do everything that the teachers is give us to work on.
I think snow days are better as opposed to e-learning days. It used to be that these were fun days when we didn’t have to go to school and we could just play in the snow. But now with zoom, and online learning, and all that we have to do school work before we can go outside. But I think we shouldn’t have to do work these days, maybe just take attendance or something and that’s it.
I used to love snow days and I am so annoyed that we don’t have snow days with no work anymore so I’m going to list pros and cons about e-learning days
PRO: LESS WORK
I consider less work a pro because because then you have more time to spend with your family or friend another reason I consider a pro is because I get distracted easily at my house and If I don’t have that much work and can get through it easily.
CON: CAN’T BE WITH YOU SCHOOL FRIENDS
Like some of my friends I live close by and I can walk or bike to but some I have to have my parents drive me and they can’t because they have work.
PRO:PLAY IN THE SNOW
I definitely think this is a pro because I love playing in the snow.
There are a lot of thoughts that run through my mind when I think about a snow day, like how my dad gets angry about how we haft to do this E learning stuff. However I think that schools should just give us a day to play in the snow and enjoy ourselves instead of having to do online learning. Online learning goes quicker than in school but online learning also is more stressful. We have about 180 days of school in a year it’s not going to kill the world to give kids a day off of school to enjoy the only snowfall Indiana will probably get all year. Even if kids had to go back into school to make up a few days in the summer it’s not so bad, we would get to see our friends again and and see everyone again before having to move on to new people next year. So schools should just give us a snow day with no stressful E learning.
I think that e-learning instead of a snow day is better because we don’t have make up days in the summer but we also have to attend zooms instead of playing on the snow. Another way I thing e-learning days are better is because we still get to be active and learn stuff instead of sitting around all day watching a screen (witch is probably what I would do). I still love snow days but I would rather do school from home then have it cut into my summer.
The good part about having a snow day is you can do work whenever you want and do it freely. It’s really nice having a snow day because when you can do your work alone and freely it’s more calming and less stressing. There is a bad part about having snow days. The bad part about having snow day is whenever I have e-learning, my parents are always working, or doing other stuff. E-learning for most parents would just be a normal day as if their kid was actually going to school. When we have e-learning parents have to make up time and it stresses everyone out. I would honestly rather have a normal day at school then e-learning because e-learning messes all of the schedules up.
I like e learning but it’s hard when you don’t have a tun of instruction on the assignment so it’s hard to work. And hard without a teacher to help. The bad thing is you can’t be at school with your friends and play outside which most people can’t play because busy with e learning or other things. You can also have a ton of free time during e learning and you get to do it freely and whenever you want to do it. E learning is better than snow days because you won’t have to make up in the summer and has a shorter summer beak. Zooms are also good because you can learn different things and staying on task with the assignments to have the rest of the day to do whatever and be done with e learning. I rather have school so we don’t have to make up in the summer time.
hola my name is dora.
I DONT LIKE E-LEARNING ON SNOWY DAYS I LIKE WATCHING COCOMELON ON MY IPAD AND EATING MICROWAVED CHICKEN NUGGETS