By Carol Tannenhauser
Two words when combined have long elicited cries of ecstasy from Upper West Side schoolchildren (if not always their parents): “Snow Day!”
Snow days were days of sleeping late, bundling up, then heading out to the park to sleigh ride, build snow people, or push a giant snowball. Snow days were days of play.
“Sorry, kids, there are technically no more snow days,” said NYC School Chancellor David C. Banks, in an interview on Fox News on Tuesday, laughing as the newscasters squealed in dismay. Then he added a chilling addendum, “It’s gonna be good for you!” He explained that children would continue to learn by engaging in remote instruction when public schools were closed for bad weather.
“That sounds very un-fun,” said a local first grader. “When will I get to wear my pink snowsuit?”
“Our cousins will be so sad,” said her older sister. “We love going to the park to sled since we go to different schools. We get to play when it’s a snow day.”
Even their mother was against the new decree. “Seems like a lose-lose for families. Parents still have to stay home or find coverage, and now can’t even have fun with their kids in the snow!”
“New York State law mandates that students must attend class 180 out of 365 days, which means the switch to a digital alternative to canceling school altogether allows schools to meet the mandate,” amny explained.
Yea, I’m sure when there’s a huge snowstorm all the kids will be inside doing online learning. Sure thing.
I do not think that you can call it learning! If online learning is as good as regular in-person instruction, let’s just fire all of the teachers/principals/staff. Use the money to hire the best educators from around the world to teach the kids, and use the savings for tutoring those who still need help.
Did we really need another affirmation of inept leadership in our school system
Most teachers are reasonable and might do a few quick lessons and release the kids – this is far from my biggest concern.
Regarding the calendar, how about figuring out a way to make it so that NYC public schools don’t end a week or more after every other school district in America. It is absolutely ridiculous. I believe this year school ends Tuesday, June 27. I think the union contract is to blame for much of this, such as with the two random days off in early June. As is getting two days for Rosh Hashanah (I’m Jewish and one day is sufficient for 90+% of the Jews at NYC public schools). And starting on the Thursday after Labor Day, rather than the Tuesday after Labor Day.
NYC also starts a week or more after other school districts in America.
Growing up on the Upper West Side, we ALWAYS ended our school year the end of June and went back the second day after Labor Day.why should it be any different now?!!
For decades, in Long Island school districts, the educational staff returned to district the day after Labor Day to set up classrooms, and have building, or district wide meetings. The students returned on the next day. However, I think that in the last few years, the educational staff has returned to their classrooms a few days BEFORE Labor Day.
Kids will logon and hen leave, the same thing they did during the pandemic.
I’m so happy my kids are out of this system. The online learning was so bad even when people were used to doing it. I can’t imagine how bad it will be when everyone has been out of practice for a year or more. How are they even going to make sure kids have devices to use on snow days when they don’t use them for the rest of the year? Yet another policy change that doesn’t take into account the reality of technology (it’s not magic), parental ability to facilitate online instruction, and even teacher willingness to make random days of online teaching worthwhile. If my kids were still in their UWS public school, they would be absent on any snow days. Their current school has a much saner policy of helping the kids make memories and live life when the weather makes it impossible to get to the school, and I’m repeatedly relieved.
When my kids were in school I would call my own Snow Days. My kids were in different schools — 1 in Private and the rest in Public. The Public Schools rarely if ever called a snow day but if the Private School did I just let the other kids have the day off too. Snow Days are special. I still remember one day when my son who was in High School (public) got up and came out and looked at his dad accusingly pointing at the time which was way past wake up time on a school day. Dad said “Snow Day”. This actually was a called Snow Day. My son got the biggest smile and immediately went back to bed. I really am glad my kids are now all grown adults and I no longer have to deal with this hoo hah that Adams and his appointees are inflicting on the city.
Good luck getting all 1 million students online on some random winter day – it wasn’t possible from a technology standpoint after 1.5 years of the pandemic. There are too many holidays in June. High School is effectively over in May. Let’s be more efficient with the days we have.
Taking everything away from kids really isn’t good for them! play is important.
What a stupid decision! Why am I not surprised? I was a teacher and we made the 180 days easily. What about kids on buses? Very unsafe.
This may be the most politically inept decision ever made. I’m with the first graders!
I disagree. They are able to create more holidays now, which politicians love to do.
I don’t have children in public school and I don’t work in public school so what do I know? But it feels like the schools are run by the union and that means they serve employees, not students.
The schools are not run by the union. I wish it were. People scapegoat unions all the time. But the UFT (teacher union) does not make the schedule. The contract does not mandate the schedule. The DOE and the
bureaucrats make the schedule. We were always able to get by with snow days before, building 3 into the calendar. Now, we have more student non-attendance days where staff reports (workday) but students do not (does not count to the 180). This is not the union’s doing but the DOE. Three holidays have been added to the calendar in recent years – Eid, Lunar New Year, and Juneteenth. Instead of eliminating the non-attendance days, they eliminated the snow days.
Agreed, there is no substitute for in person learning or interaction for any reason (i.e. working). That being said, with the current state of NYC public schools, who knows.
This is so dumb. Online learning just doesn’t work. The kids don’t attend. Give the kids a break and a day off.
If I were those parents, I would call a boycot on the school. If all parents didn’t send to school and instead allow them to play outside and be a kid it would be very productive for kids, teachers and parents. More outside activity, less indoctrination and probably less medication for all. Unacceptable. Let the kids be kids. Adulthood sucks in comparison. The system has already shown how much of a failure it is. Broken people trying to fix a broken system. Stop trying to turn kids into adults so soon. Mental health is a bigger issue across the USA than many know. It is Hurry up, grow up, get to work, work work work fall apart cause people cannot meets the demands. When they fall apart we cast them off. WRONG! Why are doing this to our kids? Setting them up for success?? More school, less information, more government tests, and less actual learning. We are not the most educated in the world anymore. Fixing the system should be the first thing we do and it will take people to ban together not tear apart.
I spent the ’78 blizzard walking around a totally transformed Manhattan with my best friend. Magical memories.
After 30 years on Wall Street, I became a HS History teacher at a NYC private school. Every year before the start of school all of the course, all assignments, assessments, the content of topics, key or illustrative images, important concepts, were uploaded onto the course management system. Snow days, and we had a few, were no excuse, all expectations were clear. My view is that one remote day is not a problem. I did teach half a semester on Zoom which was miserable.
For crying out loud, give kids a day to just be kids. Snow days are so rare in NYC anyway. Those core memories will mean a lot more to those kids than being stuck inside while the white powder is coming down.
This policy seems to assume that every family can afford to maintain an extra digital device at home, just in case there is a snow day.
I feel this is a good thing. Why miss a day of school because of bad weather— this is great! To be honest, kids have become incredibly lazy and we must do what we can to save our future generation!
I wouldn’t worry about the snow day issue. The metrics are so abysmal for the system and the vast majority of schools that it’s a joke that it will improve educational output by eliminating snow days. Quality of NYC public education is so bad it makes you cry