The days of the traditional snow day are long behind us; waking up to see the streets covered in snow and the exciting news of school being canceled. Instead, in a post-pandemic world, schools like DGN have resorted to E-learning days to combat the snow, where students join their classes through Google Meets and go through their schedules digitally. I don’t think it should be this way. Despite the school’s intention of keeping things on track with E-learning days, they only provide an illusory sense of productivity and instead, complicate learning for students and cause stress for teachers by forcing last-minute lesson changes.
Almost every school day before snow is forecasted, there’s talk of a possible snow day. The superintendent is responsible for deciding whether or not we come to school. This decision is usually made the evening before or early in the morning. The last-minute nature makes it hard for teachers to adjust to an online format. Students can’t take tests or complete labs over Google Meets, so in these cases, teachers have to juggle lessons and reschedule days for certain assessments or assignments, which can cause a lot of confusion for students. Teaching regular lessons over Google Meets isn’t ideal either, teachers have to troubleshoot glitchy screen shares and choppy audio.
Most teachers just meet on a Google Meet for a couple of minutes to take attendance and then let the students complete their digital assignments at their own pace. This defeats the purpose of having an E-learning day. Joining a video call for attendance and then completing what is essentially equivalent to a homework assignment is a waste of a school day. This is partially the reason attendance is so poor on these days. Teachers, students, and parents realize how redundant these days are. A teacher could simply assign whatever coursework for homework the next day and have virtually no difference in the flow of the class.
To put it simply: bring back traditional snow days. While E-learning days might seem like a practical solution, they only create more stress and confusion for students and teachers. A couple of extra days added to the end of the school year is a price I don’t mind paying to avoid the hassle of another E-Learning day. After all, snow days offer more than just a break from school; they’re a chance to rest, recharge, and enjoy the winter weather.