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Guidance from the Maine DOE for Schools Wishing to Implement Remote Learning Days

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Guidance from the Maine DOE for Schools Wishing to Implement Remote Learning Days

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This school year, Maine has already experienced a number of weather-related school day cancellations. As in other recent years, this may cause some districts to exceed the number of storm days that were originally planned for in the school calendar. The Department would like to send this reminder of previous guidance related to school day cancellations, makeup days, and instructional day waiver requests, as well as a link to Frequently Asked Questions on the topic. Waiver requests will be accepted in the Spring, when the danger of cancellations has lessened.
Updated Guidance for Anytime-Anywhere Learning (a.k.a. remote school days):
There has been much discussion within and outside of the Department this year on the topic of Anytime-Anywhere learning days. The Department is pleased to announce that in an effort to promote and encourage innovative practices in districts and schools, districts may pilot one Anytime-Anywhere learning day in the 2019-20 school year. The piloted Anytime-Anywhere learning day may count as one of the 175 instructional days required by law.

Districts that are interested in participating in this pilot will need to complete a short application, attesting to the assurances below:

access and equity for all students in implementation of the day;

provision of FAPE for students with disabilities;

provision of free breakfast and lunch for qualifying students;

school board approval, and staff, family and community support:

honoring of all other existing legal requirements, including regional school calendar requirements under 20-A M.R.S. 4801 2-A

The application to participate in the pilot may be found here (corrected 2/27/19).
The Department strongly encourages feedback and communication on the experiences learned in developing and implementing innovative practices in schools and districts.

Please contact Pamela Ford-Taylor, Maine DOE School Enrollment Specialist at 207-624-6617 or Pamela.Ford-Taylor@maine.gov with questions.

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Reminders for Storm Closures and Updated Guidance for Remote School Days

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Weather Related Cancellations: This school year, Maine has already experienced a number of weather-related school day cancellations. As in other recent years, this may cause some districts to exceed the number of storm days that were originally planned for in the school calendar. The Department would like to send this reminder of previous guidance related ...

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Bangor Daily News Article Discusses the Topic, Outlines DOE Rules, and Reaction from the Camden, Maine Community

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Bangor Daily News Article Discusses the Topic, Outlines DOE Rules, and Reaction from the Camden, Maine Community

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Includes survey results from staff, students and parents to the first remote learning day

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Robert F. Bukaty | AP

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Updated:

For the 2019-20 academic year, the Maine Department of Education will allow qualifying public schools to do one-day tests of "remote days" when students and staff work from home or other safe places rather than canceling school because of snow.

The "anytime-anywhere learning" day will count as one of the 175 instructional days required by law, according to a newsletter posted on the Maine Department of Education website. This means that the remote school day would not have to be made up at the end of the year or by lengthening school days when class cancellations push the total number of days when schools are open to less than 175 days.
[Maine school district extends its school day to make up for snow days]
Previously, the department did not allow remote school days to count toward the minimum 175-day requirement. Giving school districts a chance to pilot a remote school day is "an effort to promote and encourage innovative practices in districts and schools," the newsletter stated.

Last month, a combined school district in the Camden area held the first remote school day in Maine non-charter public schools. The district's superintendent received a Department of Education exemption in January to hold at least one remote school day across the district.

The district's high school, Camden Hills Regional High School, was allowed to hold a second remote school day on Monday - when a winter storm would otherwise have canceled classes - because the school had 177 days worked into its calendar.
[Snow canceled classes, but these Maine students still had to do schoolwork]
"I think [remote school days are] just a logical idea for the state of Maine, which gets a lot of snow. Our kids have the technology, it just makes sense," Five Town Community School District and Municipal School Administrative District 28 Superintendent Maria Libby said.

To use a remote school day for the 2019-20 school year, districts must meet several requirements, including ensuring there is access and equity for all students throughout the day, providing free breakfast and lunch for eligible students, and having the support of the school board, staff and community.

School officials wanting to use a remote school day in their district will have submit an application to the Department of Education proving that they have met all of the requirements.

Department of Education officials have been exploring "anytime-anywhere" learning practices since last year. The new guidelines come after consultation with the department's nutrition, enrollment and special services teams to ensure the guidance is in compliance with existing laws, Department of Education spokeswoman Rachel Paling said.

After implementing one district-wide remote school day, Libby said the district's pilot project was a success based on overall attendance and feedback from students, staff and parents.

"I'm really happy with how it turned out. I think it was really, really effective," Libby said.

Libby said attendance for the remote school day - based on submitted assignments and check ins with teachers - was higher than the average on a traditional school day. Libby said this was likely due to the fact that if students were sick, they were still able to work from home.

Following the remote school day, a survey was sent out to staff, parents and high school students in the district. In response to a question asking whether a remote school day would be preferred to going one day later into the summer, 95 percent of elementary school staff, 100 percent of middle school staff, and 98 percent of high school staff said a remote school day would be the better option, according to Libby.

About 85 percent of the parents, and 76 percent of high schoolers who responded to the survey said they would rather have a remote school day over extending the school year.

Libby said she took one complaint from a student as the biggest compliment: The work done during a remote school day was just like a normal school day.

"The whole point for us was to not miss a beat and to not have that interruption in learning," Libby said.

With the Department of Education allowing more schools to try remote school days next year, Libby said this could be a great opportunity for Maine schools to test innovative learning practices.

Libby acknowledges that other districts might face challenges in implementing this type of learning, such as encountering problems while trying to ensure that all students have access to internet during the remote school day. The Camden-based school district was able to purchase internet hotspots for any student who did not have internet access at home.

But Libby said she is happy the conversation about remote school days is at least happening at the state level and believes there are solutions to these potential hurdles.

"I do feel this has gotten the ball rolling," Libby said.

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Maine public schools can try 'work at home' snow days next year

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The "anytime-anywhere learning" day will count as one of the 175 instructional days required by law, according to a newsletter posted on the Maine Department of Education website.. Maine news, sports, politics, election results, and obituaries from the Bangor Daily News.

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NPR News Article Reporting on Camden, Maine's First Remote Learning Day

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NPR News Article Reporting on Camden, Maine's First Remote Learning Day

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Includes comments relaying concerns from leaders of other Maine school districts.

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Wednesday wasn't your average snow day for public school students in the Camden area.

Their district was the first in Maine to try out a " remote school day," which required them to complete online and take-home assignments at their houses. The new model has generated some concerns and might have difficulty finding support in other parts of the state.

Wednesday morning started like any normal snow day for 16-year-old Angus Carter. He and his dad fired up a snowblower, and cleared the long driveway to their family's home just outside of town. On a normal snow day, Angus would finish his chores, sit down in front of the TV, and like so many teenage boys, play the online battle game Fortnite.

But because of a new district policy, Carter had to take a break from the game, log on to his school-supplied tablet, and complete a few of his assignments for biology class.

"Re-do a quiz," he says. "And do some Punnett squares, to look at probability of offsprings."

Carter and other students from across SAD 28 and the Five Towns Community School District, near Camden and Rockport, were the first traditional public school students in Maine to try out this new style of " remote school day."

Superintendent Maria Libby says it's designed to address a growing number of snow days, which have to be made up.

"We've had a lot of snow days. Last year we had nine, I think," Libby says. "And I think it's a better solution than going on a Saturday or extending every day for a week. All those things take their toll. And I just think this is a much more effective way to not have so many snow days."

The approach looks slightly different depending on the grade. Kindergarten to fourth graders receive bags with activities such as books and math games. Fifth and sixth graders get take-home projects from their teachers. Older students, however, use their school-supplied laptops and tablets, many funded by the state, through which teachers post assignments and can help answer questions via online platforms.

"I just thought it was a good use of an investment that the state of Maine has made in technology," Libby says.

The new approach has required a lot of work. District staffers spent hours last summer fleshing out the idea, and Libby says teachers have had to create lesson plans and online resources. The district has also developed plans to ensure that students with disabilities get the support they need at home.

"We've really tried to be thoughtful about all the potential complications and how we can address those ahead of time," she says.

Several of Maine's public charter schools have already piloted remote school days in recent years. But adding them to Maine's traditional public schools has faced complications. In December, the Maine Department of Education issued a memo saying that remote school days wouldn't be considered "instructional days" by the state, and would only be allowed after a district had already arranged five regular makeup days. But officials in Camden say they recently met with the new Education Commissioner, who gave them permission to try out a remote school day on Wednesday.

Several other school districts, meanwhile, say they're watching the new experiment. While some superintendents are intrigued by remote school days, they express concerns about internet access for all students.

"We do have a problem with whether all kids would have access," says Tina Meserve, superintendent of RSU 9 in Farmington. "And if that would disadvantage students who are already disadvantaged when we do something like that."

Meserve says a recent survey in her district found that almost 10 percent of the district's sixth through 12th graders don't have internet access at home.

In Camden, the district has passed out several devices that supply WiFi to students at their house. The other question raised by administrators, though, is motivation.

Tim Doak, the superintendent of RSU 39 in Caribou, is unsure if students, particularly younger ones, will be self-directed enough to work at home.

"There are others that probably wouldn't have enough discipline to engage themselves the whole day," Doak says. "While they could be outside, exercising and running through the snow. It's just one of those things we would have to look at."

Camden Hills Regional High School student Angus Carter and his family have mixed opinions so far. Angus's dad, Hodding Carter, says he doesn't want his kids to lose that quintessential snow day experience of relaxing and running through the snow.

"Our daughters are all out of college now, and it was their favorite winter day, probably, was a snow day! Practice in the afternoon would get cancelled," he says. "They didn't have to go to school. Didn't have to go to practice. It was just a nice, free day in the middle of a, sometimes, difficult school year."

Angus is unsure, too. He likes that school potentially won't have to run into late June.

"I'm happy about that part. It's just annoying to have to do homework on a snow day," he says. "Which is usually, like, 'Whoopie! Snow day!' But not anymore."

The Five Towns Community School District, meanwhile, is optimistic that the model can work. Officials there say they've already heard from several parents whose young kids were eager to start on their snow day assignments.

And despite the obstacles that it took to even test out this model, it appears that other school districts will have the opportunity to try it out. Maine Department of Education spokesperson Rachel Paling says the agency is working on guidance that will include a way for school districts to pilot remote school days next year.

The department says the districts will need to have a strategy to support students with disabilities, follow federal nutrition guidelines, and "provide equitable access for all students."
Originally published 5:37 p.m. Feb. 13, 2019

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Maine School District Pilots 'Remote School Days' And Is Met With Concerns

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Wednesday wasn't your average snow day for public school students in the Camden area. Their district was the first in Maine to try out a " remote school day," which required them to complete online and take-home assignments at their houses.

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Letter to parents explaining how remote days work and the device, a 'Kajeet', that will be provided for students who do not have Internet access at home or an unreliable connection.

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This provides detailed instructions for remote learning days for students of all levels

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Devices schools can provide for student connectivity at home

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Kajeet | Powering the K-12 Mobile Environment

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Kajeet is a former cell phone company dedicated to closing the digital divide. We provide schools and districts with the tools to keep students connected.

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Edutopia Article about Virtual Snow Days

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Edutopia Article about Virtual Snow Days

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An overview of the topic with many embedded links

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Districts around the U.S. are working out policies and procedures for having kids work at home when inclement weather closes schools.

©Shutterstock/Africa Studio

A flurry of recent articles brings home yet one more way that technology is changing education: In districts across the country, snow days-those giddily unexpected days off-are becoming relics of the past. Beginning on December 1, for example, the schools around Camden, Maine, will replace two snow days per year with so-called Remote School Days, when students will complete coursework at home using internet-connected devices.

Given that many employers around the country have been implementing work from home policies in recent years, it was probably inevitable that the idea would spread to schools. And for schools, there's the logic of the initial investment: If they've spent money acquiring devices for every student, as many have done, there's a strong argument to be made that they should maximize the utility of those devices-part of the rationale for buying them is to expand students' opportunities for learning.

Still, snow days have history-and nostalgia-on their side, so why the growing consensus around replacing them? The answer largely comes down to the complex demands of school scheduling and concerns about the effects of disruption on learning.

In the winter of 2016-17, for example, schools around Portland, Oregon, lost nine days of school in December and January-enough that between snow days and the planned holiday break, students attended school on just 11 out of 30 weekdays in one stretch. All that snow-some Oregon schools lost 14 days- was later considered a factor in students' poor showing in reading, writing, and math on state-mandated tests in the spring.

A series of storms will have cascading effects on school systems. Principals and district leaders have to rework the calendar for the rest of the year-deciding whether to bring teachers and students back and shorten spring break, or keep them both longer and extend the end of the year. Both of those options can wreak havoc on family travel plans-plane tickets and hotel reservations are sometimes not refundable, and high school juniors and seniors often use spring break to visit colleges, for example.

Having students do school work at home on snow days eases the problems administrators face, but not the parents' need to sort out child care or take a day off themselves. And there's a more serious issue that distance learning can't fix: About 20 million children receive free lunch at school, and 11.7 million receive free breakfast.

A Growing Trend

Maine is following the lead of school districts in Illinois, Indiana, Minnesota, New Hampshire, Ohio, Pennsylvania, and other states, which began experimenting with working through snow days a couple of years ago. Over the summer, Anderson County School District 5 in South Carolina announced that students would work online on the school's Chromebooks in the event of snow, and four other South Carolina districts quickly followed.

Schools and districts that are trying to figure out how school at home works can take a look at the example of St. Mary's Academy in Portland, Oregon. Responding to the 2016-17 winter, the school set up procedures for Digital Learning Days after hitting four snow days before Christmas. Alyssa Tormala and Ellie Gilbert described the school's procedures for Edutopia.

Implementation isn't always easy. One of the issues schools face is that not every student has internet access at home. The Camden, Maine, district is trying to address this with Kajeet SmartSpot devices, which enable students who have cellular service to create a Wi-Fi hotspot. Some schools try to send students home with the work already loaded on their devices, when possible. (Younger students-those in grades pre-K to 2 or 3-generally bring home folders or bags filled with worksheets, learning games, and reading logs to track daily choice reading.) And students' work is generally not due the day they return to school. In Marblehead, Massachusetts, for example, the district is proposing that work be due a week after the last day off, to enable students who need help to get it from their teacher.

The issue of teacher assistance is raised by students as well: An Indiana student notes that working from home is "really tough in, like, a math class, for the high-level math classes, because some of that stuff you can't just learn by yourself-you have to have the teacher there. You have to be in the classroom."

Not every state is rushing to join the trend. Students in Rhode Island, for example, can breathe easy: The state passed a law in 2017 designed to allow schools to plan virtual work days, but the first district to submit a proposal, North Smithfield, has rescinded that proposal, citing insufficient guidance from the state Department of Education.

Let it snow, let it snow, let it snow.

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Districts around the U.S. are working out policies and procedures for having kids work at home when inclement weather closes schools. ©Shutterstock/Africa Studio A flurry of recent articles brings home yet one more way that technology is changing education: In districts across the country, snow days-those giddily unexpected days off-are becoming relics of the past.

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Has had virtual learning days for years

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University School of Milwaukee (USM) third-grader Charlie Eilbes participates in a cold day reading bingo challenge at home. It was one of the many different assignments USM teachers gave as part of their online learning day when the school was closed due to the recent extremely cold temperatures. (Photo: Submitted)

Recent snowy and cold weather events have school districts scrambling to figure out how to make up for lost time. That usually means either adding days onto the end of the year or making designated days off school days.

But other options are also being considered, especially the concept of virtual learning days.

At University School of Milwaukee in River Hills, virtual learning has been a reality for almost five years.

The idea came about after weather-related school closings in the 2013-14 school year caused USM to extend its winter break by three days. Teachers and administrators wanted a way to continue teaching and keeping students engaged during unplanned off days.

"We knew that learning didn't have to be put on pause because our students had devices that made it easy for teachers to communicate the lessons and expectations to the students," said USM communications and public relations manager Pam Seiler.

The idea was put into place in the 2014-15 school year and USM has been using it ever since, whenever inclement weather keeps classes from being hosted at the school. All grade levels, from kindergarten through 12th grade, participate to varying degrees, according to Seiler.

University School of Milwaukee third-grader George Endres participates in a challenge to build a column out of paper and stack as many books on top of it as possible. It was one of many assignments USM teachers gave as part of an online learning day Jan. 31, when the school was closed by inclement weather. (Photo: Submitted)

Examples of online lessons

The school primarily uses the Blackbaud program, but some teachers, especially in the Upper School (grades nine through 12), use Google Classroom and Google Drive. Some teachers even use Twitter, Seiler said.

Examples of lessons range from Upper School students finding and creating solutions to problems around the house to third-graders stacking books on paper columns and getting creative with making things out of boxes.

The third-graders were also able to take pictures of themselves doing the assignments and upload them to Blackbaud or Twitter with the hashtag #ColdDaySTEMChallenge.

Seiler said attendance is not "formally" tracked like it is on a regular school day because the school doesn't know whether students are with their parents, grandparents or babysitters, for example, who may not have access to the Blackbaud portal or to their teachers' email.

"Students have the option to complete the assignments at a later date if they were not able to do them on the actual snow day," Seiler said.

When it comes to possible technical problems, Seiler said some students might have WiFi issues, which are handled on a case-by-case basis with each teacher. Other times, families have forgotten their password to the Blackbaud portal. Seiler said teachers are on call via email to respond to student and parent questions.

Random Lake goes virtual

While most area school districts cancelled class Jan. 28, the Random Lake School District in Sheboygan County implemented a virtual learning day.

In anticipation of having the next day being called off, the district arranged for parents and students to take home digital devices.

The district's use of virtual learning programs is part of a rollout by the Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction (DPI), which started looking into the issue three years ago to find more productive alternatives to traditional snow days.

RELATED: One Wisconsin school district's answer to a big storm is 'digital snow day'

According to DPI operations program associate Christine Tiedje, the DPI is working with the Random Lake School District to collect results and information from the district's pilot program. Tiedje said that the information gathered from the program will help develop parameters and guidance for similar district programs moving forward.

So far, Tiedje said, the DPI has not approved or disapproved any virtual learning program meant to count as instructional time when a school is closed due to inclement weather. She recommended that districts consult with their attorney before developing such a program, "considering the difficult practical and legal issues involved."

"Some issues identified by the DPI include how to accommodate students without internet access or compatible devices, how to serve special education students, how to keep grade school students engaged and how teachers will provide live instruction," Tiedje said in an email to Now News Group.

Other area schools

The recent snow events have other suburban school districts trying to figure out whether virtual learning days are good options for them.

Nicolet High School principal Greg Kabara said that while the school has no current plans to implement virtual learning days, it has recently started discussing the option with its teachers as a possibility in the future.

Kabara said that if the school decides to implement virtual learning days, it would use its current learning management system, Canvas.

"It could be easily be used as the primary platform for pushing out material, assignments, class discussions and more during a virtual learning day," Kabara said.

Attendance would be monitored through projects, assessments or assignments completed and submitted online, according to Kabara. All grade levels in the school could be included, he said.

Kabara also said most classes could include some area of online learning, but lab-based or hands-on classes could pose a challenge, depending on the unit of study.

The Pewaukee School District has not used any virtual days to make up lost class time, according to Superintendent Mike Cady. Like Nicolet, Cady said that the district already has the tools in place for potential use of virtual learning days in the future.

For example, every Pewaukee School District student in second through 12th grade is issued a Google Chromebook. Seventh- through 12th-graders are allowed to take their devices home.

The Pewaukee School District also has a high percentage of students with internet access at home and has the ability to issue hotspots for students who don't, Cady said.

Also like Nicolet, the district uses Canvas as its learning management system to help facilitate digital learning. Additionally, the district uses the Google suite of programs with its students.

Other districts, such as the Arrowhead Union High School District, Kettle Moraine School District and Mequon-Thiensville School District, said they have no plans to implement virtual learning days in the immediate future.

The Hamilton School District had considered a virtual learning day Jan. 31 for Hamilton High School, but then decided against it, as it looked like it wouldn't meet requirements for instructional time. Instead, the district closed that day, and will make up that day's closing on June 12.

Hamilton School District spokesperson Denise Lindberg said that several years ago, the district did use virtual learning once when it needed more classroom space for student testing at the high school. Teachers posted lesson plans and posted them online for students who were not taking tests.
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reporter Margaret Cannon contributed to this story.
Read or Share this story: https://www.jsonline.com/story/communities/northshore/news/river-hills/2019/02/06/wisconsin-schools-consider-replacing-snow-days-virtual-learning/2768021002/

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University School of Milwaukee has used virtual learning days for years. Now other districts looking into it, too.

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University School of Milwaukee (USM) third-grader Charlie Eilbes participates in a cold day reading bingo challenge at home. It was one of the many different assignments USM teachers gave as part of their online learning day when the school was closed due to the recent extremely cold temperatures.

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Seems to work well here

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Digital Learning Day Protocol

To start with, teachers posted instructions and virtual office hours for the day by 10 a.m. on our learning management system (we use Schoology). Learning activities were posted for all classes, not just those missed on that day, and those learning activities were expected to last about 30 minutes per class period. Finally, those students who experienced power outages or internet disruptions were not penalized for being unable to complete the work; they simply continued to study with their regular course materials.

We crossed our fingers and hoped . . . and we were blown away by the results. Analytics from Schoology revealed that students and faculty accessed their pages as frequently and for as long as they would during a normal school day.

Student and parent feedback was positive and constructive. Students asked to have a deliverable to motivate them to get the work done, and some students even advocated for offering a regular DLD before every exam period.

Luckily or not, more snow days followed after our exam review period, so we created what we called Protocol B, designed to replace a regular school day.

Once again, teachers posted instructions and virtual office hours for the day by 10 a.m. on Schoology, but this time, DLD activities were limited to the classes being missed on that day. The learning activities for each class were expected to last between 45 and 60 minutes per class period, and students were required to submit a deliverable in each class to demonstrate completion of the work. The parents of students who experienced power outages or internet disruptions were required to notify the school of that fact as soon as possible.

Recipe for Success

Based on these experiences, our recipe for implementing a successful DLD calls for four basic ingredients: a digital learning platform, access to devices, learning objectives, and a clearly communicated, proactive protocol developed by faculty and administration.

In our case, being one-to-one (with one iPad per student) and having Schoology already in place smoothed the transition to a DLD. But equipment aside, the most critical ingredient of any school day-digital or otherwise-is the learning objective. And this is what makes the DLD format so exciting. As teachers, we found that when we created our DLD objectives, we were free to distill our intentions for the day, asking, "What does meaningful learning look like?" The resounding answer was: not busy work. Here are some examples of DLD activities that our teachers implemented:

World language students created two-minute films or photo collages of their snow day activities, narrated in their world language. Students shared their pieces on Schoology and received feedback from each other and their teacher in the world language.

Biology and digital literacy students prepared for their finals by using Padlet to post questions, answers, and visual resources that were then available to all students in all sections of those subjects.

English and math students conferred with their teachers via FaceTime and Google Hangouts.

Physical education and dance students posted their own instructional videos on Schoology.

Teachers from all disciplines converted the day's essential course content into short videos using Adobe Spark, iMovie, Keynote, PowerPoint, Explain Everything, and the recording tools on their devices.

Food for Thought

Although a DLD requires access to digital options, it does not require a one-to-one environment. As long as teachers and students have the ability to communicate through some kind of digital platform, a DLD is possible. Even a smartphone can be a powerful tool.

Here are a couple of tips for creating an ad hoc DLD. Set up a social media hashtag and have students use it when they post, which will enable you to easily search their responses. Take advantage of the huge number of useful videos on YouTube. You can use Remind (which works as a website, app, or texting service) to communicate and share materials with students. Or try curating a collection of links and resources to share with students through Pinterest, eduClipper, or Pocket. More simply, if you use a teacher web page, you can post instructions and share resources there.

If all else fails, you can always email with your students. Anything to get the job done.

Even if you can't host a DLD for students, don't miss the chance to have a DLD for yourself. Take the time to try the tools you've been meaning to try, create a flipped lesson, or start the YouTube channel you dreamed of creating. No matter what, snow days don't have to be abominable anymore.

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To start with, teachers posted instructions and virtual office hours for the day by 10 a.m. on our learning management system (we use Schoology). Learning activities were posted for all classes, not just those missed on that day, and those learning activities were expected to last about 30 minutes per class period.

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Addresses Issues with Formula with Free and Reduced Lunch

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Addresses Issues with Formula with Free and Reduced Lunch

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from 2014

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The Hechinger Report is a national nonprofit newsroom that reports on one topic: education. Sign up for our weekly newsletters to get stories like this delivered directly to your inbox.

In the Owsley County School District in Kentucky, each winter there are more than 30 days when there's too much snow to get students to school safely.

So the district, located in a rural area south of the Daniel Boone National Forest, pioneered virtual school in the winter several years ago, getting students to hang up sleds and log online for classes on snow days. Although many remote areas of the country lack access to high-speed Internet service, that is not a problem in this district. But some students do not have computers at home.

"The next problem is how do we get devices to the most needy kids," said superintendent Tim Bobrowski. "We work in a very impoverished area - that's a challenge."
Related: Q and A with Barbara Kurshan: New program trains educators online so they can teach online
More schools are considering the options for virtual school when teachers or students cannot get to school. A new pilot in Pennsylvania was approved by this year. A school district in Georgia recently approved plans to offer lessons online when there is too much snow to open school buildings.

The experiences of those who have already tried virtual school days show that it's not as easy as it might seem to offer a meaningful education in this format. But some of the early adopters, such as Owsley County, didn't let the uncertainty stop them. They saw each obstacle as a problem to solve, not an excuse to quit.

In New Jersey, state lawmakers are considering a bill that would allow virtual school days to count toward the mandatory 180-day school year. Right now, the law says that school days don't count if the buildings are not open.

"It is an outdated law," said superintendent Erik Gundersen of the Pascack Valley Regional High School District in northeast New Jersey.

That has encouraged his relatively wealthy district to try a pilot program. Fewer than 10 of the 2,000 students had no Internet access at home, so that wasn't a problem. Also, the district has an 11-year-old program that gives students access to a school-owned computer that they can take home. Teachers have been using a variety of online learning programs so that students can work remotely on lessons. The teachers will soon move to one, unified system, which should help students because they won't have to learn a new program for each teacher.

It was good to experiment first, Gundersen said, to give the district an informed perspective on what worked best.

"It's one of the things we pride ourselves in, giving our teachers some freedom," Gundersen said.

Gundersen said state officials see the value in this concept, and many are amenable to changing the law. Recently proposed legislation would allow the days to count.

In Kentucky's Owsley County, schools this year will be allowed to have up to 10 days of at-home learning, which will count as regular schools days and not have to be made up in the summer.

Another regulation there has been a hurdle for the virtual snow days. The federal laws that provide money to give students meals don't allow for home food delivery. Students must come to the school or to a community center to get breakfast and lunch - something that is common in summer, but not feasible on a snow day when the roads are dicey. Going without meals isn't a good idea either, Bobrowski said, and nearly every child in the district qualifies for free or reduced price meals.

"When students here leave on Friday they are taking bags of food home from us to get them through on the weekend," he said.

Ideally, Bobrowski would like to make those federal school nutrition dollars count toward meals that are delivered to students at home on a snow day. The district has requested a waiver from federal officials to allow that.

"There are a lot of days when by 10 a.m. the roads are good," he said. "Let's serve lunch and supper, versus breakfast and lunch."

These problems need to be solved, but they are not halting progress on the snow day program, Bobrowski said. An improvement they plan to make next year is to create a mini-course that would take place during the month's worth of snow days. This would be an extra class, such as an online course in art or computer science, for example. Preparing for these virtual classes requires extra teacher training.

"Selling that idea is sometimes tough, but I think most of our teachers like it," Bobrowski said.

This story was produced by The Hechinger Report, a nonprofit, independent news website focused on inequality and innovation in education. Read more about .
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As winter approaches, virtual school replaces snow days in some districts

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The Hechinger Report is a national nonprofit newsroom that reports on one topic: education. Sign up for our weekly newsletters to get stories like this delivered directly to your inbox. In the Owsley County School District in Kentucky, each winter there are more than 30 days when there's too much snow to get students to school safely.

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Comments on the addition of hardcopy materials for those without Internet access

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Comments on the addition of hardcopy materials for those without Internet access

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Each year, students at Owsley County Schools miss nearly a month of school because of snow and ice.

The time away from class takes a real toll on student learning, says Jason Hall, an elementary school teacher in the rural Kentucky district.

"As educators, we always worry about summer dip," Hall says, explaining how students tend to forget things over the long break. "With snow days in the past, we missed so much that students would come in and it would be almost like winter dip."

Not anymore, though. Now, when weather makes it too dangerous for students to come to school, they attend virtually.

Elementary and middle school students log into the district's learning management system from their home computers to complete designated snow-day lessons. Unlike day-to-day instruction, these lessons are tailored to each student, based on where they need to improve.

Students also have hard copies of lessons and assignments selected by the teacher. That way, if students don't have access to a computer or the Internet at home, or their power is knocked out by a storm, they can still get their work done.

This year, high school students use virtual days to work on short-term courses, which run from December 1 through March 1. These teacher-designed courses cover subjects not typically offered at the school - abnormal psychology and genealogy are among those offered this year - and are worth one-quarter credit.

"The idea is, if they started as freshmen, they would have one full elective credit by the time they graduate," explains Jennifer Hall, a teacher at Owsley County High School.

Students aren't the only ones working during virtual snow days. Teachers are in near constant contact with students.

"I either send them personal Facebook messages, post and tag them in Facebook status updates, email them directly from the Blackboard course, and/or submit announcements via Blackboard for the entire course," says Jessica Brewer, a math teacher at Owsley County High School. Brewer says she also comments on digital journal entries, calls and texts students, and checks email throughout the day.

While students like being able to select their short-term class, not all are thrilled about doing school work on a snow day.

"Even though it's a snow day, it is a day that you can learn and won't have to make up in the summer." Jason Hall, teacher, Owsley County Schools

"We're still working on that mindset. That even though it's a snow day, it is a day that you can learn and won't have to make up in the summer," says Jason Hall, who recalls the school year going well into June when he was a student.

This approach has been particularly useful for the district's lower-achieving students, Jason Hall says, noting that a group of students who were "notorious" for scoring the lowest on end-of-year exams performed better last year, in part because of personalized lessons assigned to middle school students during snow days.

"I just feel like part of that was because those snow days weren't wasted days for them," he says. "We were able to get a whole lot more learning in."

Owsley County Schools piloted virtual snow days, referred to within the district as "innovative learning" or "nontraditional instruction" days, during the 2010-2011 school year after getting approval from the Kentucky Department of Education. The district is one of a handful in the state allowed up to 10 virtual days each year, per the department.

Virtual snow days are a reminder of how, with technology, learning opportunities aren't limited by the four walls of a classroom. That's why schools in states such as New Jersey, which is about to be slammed with up to two feet of snow, are asking state legislators to allow virtual days to count toward the number of school days required by the state.

"If weather and other factors would cooperate, our public school districts would never struggle to complete a 180-day schedule," Lauren Schoen, superintendent of school for Mahwah Township Public Schools, and Erik Gundersen, superintendent of schools for Pascack Valley Regional High School District, wrote in a recent op-ed.

"In the real world, conditions arise that demand school calendar flexibility," the New Jersey superintendents wrote.

School districts in New Jersey can petition the state for virtual days, which is what Pascack Valley did ahead of a major snowstorm last year, but currently there is no guarantee the state will count them as school days. A bill permitting virtual days is pending approval by the New Jersey Department of Education.

Pennsylvania, New Hampshire, and Ohio already have policies in place that give districts a set number of virtual days to use when schools close for weather, allowing them the flexibility to continue learning even when Mother Nature tries to interfere.

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Inside One District's Virtual Snow Days - Digital Promise

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Each year, students at Owsley County Schools miss nearly a month of school because of snow and ice. The time away from class takes a real toll on student learning, says Jason Hall, an elementary school teacher in the rural Kentucky district.

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Overview of Considerations for Virtual Snow Days

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Overview of Considerations for Virtual Snow Days

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Excellent article covering how to handle the potential issues that could arise.

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When snowstorms turn school districts into winter wonderlands, everybody's routine can be thrown off track. If inclement weather is too severe for travel, schools close, often to the delight of students who have grown accustomed to using the extra time to play outside, rest, and relax. Many teachers also do this on the snow day or use the extra hours to grade papers and plan future lessons. The unscheduled time off can be a blessing, but the time missed in class for a snow day must be made up. In the recent past, some states began allowing schools to implement e-learning days or virtual learning days when school has been called off due to inclement weather. This strategy helps minimize the number of make-up days districts must add to the school calendar in order to be in compliance with state education laws. When a district announces that a virtual learning day will take place, students are expected to complete assignments that will count toward their attendance. Virtual learning days seem like a good way to keep kids' learning on track, but with them come challenges that need to be addressed before it can be considered a practical way to educate children.

Requirements

First and foremost, access to a laptop, tablet, Chromebook, or similar device is mandatory for virtual learning. Districts that have traded textbooks for devices will have to send these home with the students prior to the day school will be cancelled. Many of these districts already allow students to travel to and from school with their devices, but those who haven't been practicing this will need to train the student body on how to appropriately care for the electronics that they will be bringing home. It's necessary to make parents aware of the rules and procedures students should follow when using their device away from school. Equally important is the prior experience students need in order to complete the learning activities assigned by teachers. Virtual learning days are not the time to introduce students to a new program or expect them to navigate through a new learning platform. Instead, whatever the assignment, it should be presented in a way that is familiar to them. When students are used to the kind of homework they are going to do, they are more likely to complete the assignments with success.

Many believe that students will be required to have internet access on the day virtual learning is declared. This is not the case. Schools know that this is too much to ask out of their students; that is why assignments are designed with this in mind. Prior to leaving before the anticipated snow day, the devices are loaded with all that the student will need to complete the work. Teachers should also preview the virtual lesson with the students and introduce them to the directions they will follow later on their own.

Carrying out a successful virtual learning day requires a good deal of preplanning on the part of the teacher. Making sure students have the lesson on their devices is just one necessary part of this. Additionally, that lesson must provide continuity with the learning that students have been taking part in while in the classroom setting. The content covered by students during virtual learning should be like the lesson that would have been presented by the teacher had the school building been open on that day. This is one of the reasons why virtual learning days usually only occur on the first day of consecutive snow days. Preplanning can be challenging for teachers. Reaching out to experienced colleagues and addressing this issue in department meetings can help.

How to Help Students at Home

Naturally, students will run into problems when working alone on their virtual assignments. Due to this, many districts mandate that teachers make themselves available to students during the hours that school normally takes place. Contact information should be provided by the teacher to students prior to the virtual learning day. Teachers have a variety of choices in how they can be contacted by students. Older students or those who have simple questions may e-mail their teachers. Others may seek help using a program like Skype or Google Hangouts where parties can send messages to one another or hold video conferences. This can be especially helpful if the program allows the teacher to share his or her own computer screen, enabling the student to follow along in step-by-step instructions. Commonly, students like to call their teachers to get questions answered in real time. While some have no worries about distributing personal numbers to students, other teachers want to avoid giving out this information. Technology has found a way around that: programs like Google Voice create virtual phone numbers that teachers can give to students. Even though students call a virtual number, the call is connected to the teachers' personal number. Not all questions may be able to be handled away from the classroom, however. This means that teachers will still have to anticipate dealing with homework trouble when students do return to school.

Another part of preplanning a teacher must do involves making accommodations and modifications for students with special needs. Students who have IEPs or LEPs or who receive Title 1 services cannot always be given the same assignments as other students. This means that the teacher must have prepared the virtual learning day with these students in mind.

Finding a Balance

Virtual learning days can be a big adjustment for students in how they use their time. Students must find a balance between enjoying the snow day at their leisure and managing time so that they meet the expectations of the virtual learning day. Each child's goal is to not only learn on this day but to also have it count towards their yearly attendance. School districts understand that completing lessons away from the classroom can be difficult for some. One way to help everyone make the virtual learning count is to allow students multiple days to complete the work that was assigned. School policies vary in the number of days students have to turn in assignments, but, generally, they are given three days to finish the work.

Due to the amount of preplanning required, possible questions from students, and other factors, it is not practical for schools to declare consecutive virtual learning days. The weather has been known to keep districts closed for days and sometimes weeks at a time. Attempting to preplan for this or expecting students to master skills while gone for lengthy periods does not make sense. Still, substituting a virtual learning day for a regular school day can make a world of difference in the lives of all school stakeholders. Virtual learning days can keep people from having to make severe adjustments in their calendars when make-up days are the alternative. Virtual learning can help keep vacation plans or graduation dates the same, not to mention save students from losing the gains that they make in their learning.

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When snowstorms turn school districts into winter wonderlands, everybody's routine can be thrown off track. If inclement weather is too severe for travel, schools close, often to the delight of students who have grown accustomed to using the extra time to play outside, rest, and relax.

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They have 3 days available and have adapted for K-12

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CLOSE

Snow days are no longer "free days" for students in one rural Iowa school district near the Minnesota border.

Instead, Estherville Lincoln Central schools is taking a nod from its northern neighbors and holding "virtual snow days" when weather forces the district to cancel in-person classes.

"If we can have virtual schools, why can't we have, for one day, a virtual day?" Superintendent Tara Paul said.

Virtual snow days are a new addition this year. It was a change that didn't go without complaints from students, Paul said. Her own children weren't excited about the idea of virtual learning on snowy days.

But "it wasn't like they had to spend all day doing work," she said.

What's a virtual snow day?

During a virtual snow day, both teachers and students complete classwork at home.

Students are given assignments lasting between 10 and 30 minutes, depending on their grade level, and connect remotely, where teachers to ask questions or post completed assignments.

Teachers can conduct online video chats with small groups.

High school senior Kenlee Schilling said the experience was no different than normal homework assignments on a typical school day.

Elementary student Sadee Wheatley reading to her fish during the virtual snow day in Estherville, Iowa. (Photo: Special to the Register)

Younger students, in grades K-2, are sent home with assignment options that can be completed without an electronic device in case one is not available.

Students in grades 3-12 have Chromebooks provided by the school, so assignments are completed on their devices. Even without internet access at home, assignments will post online once the devices reconnect with the school's Wi-Fi.

The assignments themselves vary. For elementary school reading, they might involve reading to a stuffed animal or a pet.

For physical education, students might be asked to shovel snow and post a picture of the pile they've made. And for social studies, students might have to read or watch the news and write a report on it.

Older students are tasked with more advanced assignments. In a high school food class, students were asked to cook a dish of their choosing and write a short paragraph explaining what they made and how they did it.

An example of an assignment completed for a Virtual Snow Day for a high school foods II class in Estherville Lincoln Central. (Photo: Special to the Register)

What are the benefits?

Ultimately, the goal is to keep students learning - and to create more consistency across the calendar year.

Teachers and students will not need to "make up" the snow days in the summer because a virtual day is considered a normal school day, Paul said.

The district has three virtual snow days available to use this year. If there are more snow days needed, students will need to make up that time later in the school year.

In addition, Paul said learning to work from home is good preparation for life after high school, which requires time management and focus.

The percentage of employees who work remotely at some time rose from 39 percent in 2012 to 43 percent in 2017, according to a Gallup survey.

Read or Share this story: https://www.desmoinesregister.com/story/news/education/2019/01/23/virtual-snow-days-iowa-students-online-learning-winter-storm-weather/2656648002/

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Virtual snow days requires kids to learn at home; here's how one rural Iowa district does it

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CLOSE Snow days are no longer "free days" for students in one rural Iowa school district near the Minnesota border. Instead, Estherville Lincoln Central schools is taking a nod from its northern neighbors and holding "virtual snow days" when weather forces the district to cancel in-person classes.

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Jason Lee, a Western Kentucky University student from Korea, walks in the falling snow Wednesday, Jan. 20, 2016, in Bowling Green, Ky. Photo: Miranda Pederson/Daily News via AP

The snow day. It's the time to forget about school, plow down a hill on a sled and build a front-yard snowman. It's a joyful break for communities where snow days consume just a few days of each school year.

And there is evidence that an occasional snow day isn't going to hurt academic achievement. But in places where snow-clogged roads stall school buses on a routine basis, the loss of classroom time can be a major problem. It's like the academic losses documented in the so-called "summer slide," except these are in the winter.

The Owsley County School District in Kentucky started testing virtual snow days, providing home-based lessons when school buildings are closed, about five years ago. This happens when it's too dangerous for students to travel to school - which occurs about 30 days out of the school year - and educators there say it has been going well. New legislation has allowed nearly 45 more districts in Kentucky to try it.

But supporting a high-quality virtual snow day program isn't as easy as it might sound.

When The Hechinger Report last spoke with Owsley County's superintendent, Timothy W. Bobrowski, in 2014, the district virtual snow days were promising, but imperfect. There were a lot of reasons the district should have said "no" to trying it at all. But the educators there made do, worked toward solutions and have continued to refine the program.
Related: As winter approaches, virtual school replaces snow days in some districts
The school district in Owsley County, one of the poorest communities in the United States, has an advantage over many regions in Appalachia: Most homes have Internet access. The problem in this school district was access to digital devices. Many students said they lacked a reliable computer. Next year, the district, which is a member of the Digital Promise's League of Innovative Schools, will give students Chromebook laptops to use at home and at school. The program, which is being paid for largely with grant funding, includes plans for maintaining the devices in the long term and for training teachers.

Another problem solved by the school district wasn't high tech. When students are at home on a snow day, they don't have access to free or low-cost school meals. In a place as poor as eastern Kentucky, that often means going hungry. In Owsley County, school leaders discovered that government regulations would only reimburse the schools for meals served when the school buildings were open. The district appealed to the government: The regulations already allowed for summertime school meal programs, so why not in winter?

Today, the district is allowed to drop off meals at several places in the county on virtual school days. The district served about 80 meals last Thursday in public libraries, churches and housing developments. That might not sound like a lot, but there are only about 740 students in this rural school district, and many live in far-flung places that make door-to-door food delivery impractical anyway. To make the most of the school lunch delivery program, the district selected food drop-off points near the places where the neediest children live.

Bobrowski said the students arrived thankful for a school cafeteria meal.

[Cross-posted at The Hechinger Report]

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Forget Snow Days. How One School District Uses This Time to Teach Students - and Fill Their Bellies As Well

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Jason Lee, a Western Kentucky University student from Korea, walks in the falling snow Wednesday, Jan. 20, 2016, in Bowling Green, Ky. Photo: Miranda Pederson/Daily News via AP The snow day. It's the time to forget about school, plow down a hill on a sled and build a front-yard snowman.

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Maine DOE Applications for 'Anytime, Anywhere' School Days

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Maine DOE Applications for 'Anytime, Anywhere' School Days

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Brief!

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The Kentucky District's Web Page with up to date info on "non-traditional" learning days

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The Kentucky District's Web Page with up to date info on "non-traditional" learning days

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Personalizing Education

Overcoming Barriers for Students

Districts of Innovation

The district has 1:1 devices for grades 2 - 12 using Chrome Books. Additionally, classroom iPads are in the hands of K-2 students and teachers. Students can take these devices home for a small deposit. The district uses multiple digital tools and digital resources to help personalize and adapt learning for its students. The district supports Google certification for its faculty and currently has 11 teachers who are level I Google Certified. An exciting new virtual Reality lab will be in operation by end of first semester at OCHS.

In 2011, Owsley county's college and career readiness percentage stood at seven percent. At the end of 2015, CCR stood at 79.9%. At of the end of 2017, CCR stands at 84%. This illustrates an overwhelming growth of 77% in 6 years. Forty-eight students in grade 10 -1 2 are enrolled in dual credit classes for fall 2017 at OCHS. It is of special note that Hazard Community and Technical College has awarded two OCHS students an AA degree on the same day that OCHS awarded them their high school diplomas.

Owsley County High School was a distinguished school for the first time in district history in 2016. Additionally, the Owsley County School District was deemed a Proficient/Progressing school district.

During the 2017 school year, the Owsley County School District, in partnership with Manchester Memorial Hospital and the local health department, is participating in telemedicine in order to offer health care services for staff and students while at school. Additionally, the district also partners with the Elgin foundation to offer free dental care to students in grades K - 6. In the Fall of 2017, a part time social worker will be employed in the district. This social work position is funded by the Elgin Foundation and is designed to support our students.

Personalize learning for teachers is valued and the Owsley School District fully participates in micro credentialing. To date 29 of the district's 48 certified teachers (60% of the certified teaching faculty) have earned a microcredential since the district began participation last year.

Kellogg Foundation Initial Planning

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Office of Superintendent * Page - Owsley County SD

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Districts of Innovation The district has 1:1 devices for grades 2 - 12 using Chrome Books. Additionally, classroom iPads are in the hands of K-2 students and teachers. Students can take these devices home for a small deposit. The district uses multiple digital tools and digital resources to help personalize and adapt learning for its students.

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They provide meals ahead of time to be frozen and used on their 'Remote Learning Days'.

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Gives hard-copy materials to K-6 and covers issues that may arise with access for online approach used for 7-12 and teachers

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Comprehensive answers to many of the logistical considerations that may arise for students, teachers and parents.

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Camden, Maine's approach

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Pen Bay Newspaper about Reaction to First Camden Remote Learning Day

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Pen Bay Newspaper about Reaction to First Camden Remote Learning Day

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Similar information to the BDN article, but with more commentary from parents.

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The Five Town CSD and the MSAD 28 implemented the first public school Remote School Day in the state of Maine on Feb. 13, 2019 at Camden Hills Regional, Camden Rockport Middle, and Camden Rockport Elementary, and it was a huge success.

The day was exciting for most of our students and teachers. Elementary students woke up extra early and insisted on cafeteria style lunches at home, middle schoolers stayed in their PJ's, connected with their peers, and buckled down to work, and high school students focused their time so they would have time to do other things - ski, work, etc.

The attendance rates across the district were higher than for a normal day. We heard from a parent whose children participated from a vacation in Florida and one whose child was home sick but was able to join in.

The approach looked slightly different depending on the grade level. Kindergarten to fourth graders received "Genius Bags" with activities such as books and math games. Fifth and sixth graders got take-home projects from their teachers. Older students, however, used their school-supplied laptops and tablets, and accessed their learning while at home on what would have typically been a day to have been made up in June.

Students and teachers had prepared well for the day.

We surveyed parents, staff, and students a couple of days after the Remote School Day. Overall, the feedback from staff, students and parents was very positive. The parent feedback on the success of the remote school day ranged from 80 percent success (CHRHS) to 84 percent success (CRES). The parents also believed that the remote school day was worth having instead of making up the day in June (83 percent CRMS to 85 percent CRES).

Based on the survey feedback we made some quick adjustments in time for the second Remote School Day at Camden Hills Regional High School on March 4 that went off without a hitch. Feedback had included: a consistent method for checking in with each teacher/class, an opportunity for real-time interactions with peers and teachers, and that teachers commit to answering emails in a timely fashion.

High school students liked being able to complete their work at their own pace and the opportunity to sleep in during the morning. Many students were able to balance their need for extra sleep, outside recreation, and home responsibilities and appreciated the opportunity to do so versus a school day in late June.

At the middle level, parents commented on how some students collaborated with one another to get their work completed, setting up a classroom chat and helping one another out if they had any questions. Parents felt like their children did not have any major challenges in completing the work required but had access to their teachers if needed. Many felt there was a good "balance" between working and playing.

At the elementary level, some students were so excited they began their work the night before! Many parents stated that they loved the opportunity to work together as a family and appreciated that the teacher was available online for support. Many photos of young learners in their pajamas playing math games or reading with their families were shared with us.

Parents and students did encounter some challenges. There was significant variability in work time requirements and some younger students struggled to complete their work independently, thus causing a hardship for parents who work from home or rely on child care providers during a snow day. Many also stated while this was a good way to reduce the number of snow days, they would want to see a limit on the number of days per school year that remote school days were used. We agree and feel a balance is best.

Moving forward, our districts plan to use two Remote School Days next year. This will include one of the required 175 days and the one extra day we have beyond that. (The Maine Department of Education will allow schools across the state to pilot remote school days for one of the required 175 days next year.)

The Five Town CSD and MSAD 28 districts are happy to share information and resources with other districts who are interested in piloting this idea. It is well worth it!

-Five Town CSD and MSAD 28

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remote school day for camden-area students a huge success

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Remote School Day for Camden-area students a huge success

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The Five Town CSD and the MSAD 28 implemented the first public school Remote School Day in the state of Maine on Feb. 13, 2019 at Camden Hills Regional, Camden Rockport Middle, and Camden Rockport Elementary, and it was a huge success. The day was...

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This NYT article supports the effectiveness of this online tool as a key resource for remote learning.

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Maureen Suhendra works with classrooms across the country as part of the Education Partnerships team at Khan Academy.

It was snowing hard outside the KIPP middle school in northern Manhattan, as Silvestre Arcos' class of 10- and 11-year-olds worked hard practicing math, eager to earn coveted badges and the bragging rights that go with them.

"We might have a snow day tomorrow!" Arcos said. But he was unfazed by the potential disruption to his lesson plans.

Teachers can watch their students' progress in real time with online programs, even when they're stuck at home on a snow day.

If there was a snow day the students could continue working, using the Khan Academy software aligned to the fifth grade Common Core standards. Arcos could also send specific assignments to his students through Khan Academy. While the students are in the warmth of their homes, across town, Arcos could watch their progress in real time. He could see which students were struggling with particular concepts, which students needed to be challenged more and how much time students were spending on the site. Then he could take all of this information into account when planning for the next day, carefully considering how he can tailor his instruction to meet each student's unique needs.

Khan is one of many online tools that let teachers provide instruction and guidance and allow students to continue their studies at home. Snow days make these online tools particularly handy.

Join Opinion on Facebook and follow updates on twitter.com/roomfordebate.

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Online Programs Are Important Tools on Snow Days

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Maureen Suhendra works with classrooms across the country as part of the Education Partnerships team at Khan Academy. It was snowing hard outside the KIPP middle school in northern Manhattan, as Silvestre Arcos' class of 10- and 11-year-olds worked hard practicing math, eager to earn coveted badges and the bragging rights that go with them.

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This NYT article surfaces the difficulty involved in implementing remote learning days in urban, high poverty areas like Chicago.

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Marilyn Anderson Rhames is a middle school teacher in a Chicago charter school. She also writes " Charting My Own Course," a blog published by Education Week Teacher.

I think " teleschooling" on snow days is the biggest advancement in education since the Reagan administration reneged on calling ketchup a vegetable in the federal school lunch program. It just makes sense.

The success of teleschooling boils down to equity in funding, proper management of resources and thinking outside the box.

I applaud the efforts of the school districts that are embracing this new strategy. I'm jealous, actually.

As exciting and inspiring as this news is, it's yet another story about the great work the white, affluent suburban schools are doing to educate their youth. I kept reading the article, hoping to see mention of one nonselective enrollment Chicago public school that also used remote learning tools during the storm. I saw none, and I'm not surprised.

The success of teleschooling, just like brick-and-mortar schooling, boils down to equity in funding, proper management of the resources a school district has and the willingness of administrators to think outside the box. None of which, I'm pained to say, is in great abundance within the Chicago Public Schools system. When you throw poverty in the mix, advancements like teleschooling seem near impossible.

Consider this: Chicago Public Schools includes 658 schools and 400,000 students, with 87 percent considered low income. Technology within the district is notoriously outdated and plagued with theft and corruption. So before teleschooling can take hold, an infrastructure of checks and balances to prevent abuse or loss of equipment would have to be firmly in place.

Additionally, in my 10 years experience teaching in Chicago, about 25 to 30 percent of my students did not have Internet access in their homes, which further challenges the notion of teleschooling.

Interestingly, Chicago's solution to make up for this year's four snow days is to turn the three remaining teacher development days into student attendance days and require students to come to school one day during their summer break. Teachers will make up their professional days by starting their summer break three days later.

Postponing summer break certainly won't inspire quality teaching and learning, so teleschooling really is a good idea, not just for snow days but for any time of year.

If done right, this type of instruction could provide students with the technology and independent learning skills that are necessary for a quality 21st-century education. But all students -- not just the privileged few -- should have this rich and creative opportunity to learn.

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Virtual School on Snow Days Is Not Just for the Rich

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Marilyn Anderson Rhames is a middle school teacher in a Chicago charter school. She also writes " Charting My Own Course," a blog published by Education Week Teacher. I think " teleschooling" on snow days is the biggest advancement in education since the Reagan administration reneged on calling ketchup a vegetable in the federal school lunch program.

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Interesting article from the NYT about the need for support for working parents when snow days or remote learning days occur

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Like other working parents, I'm fixated on the radio each morning because of the recent winter weather. No news merely means more bundling of my kids, ages 3 and 5, before a gusty trek to the bus stop. But a school shutdown means a chaotic struggle to find a sitter and rejigger my work schedule.

I am not alone. Today in the United States, both parents work in the majority of married families with children, and three-quarters of single mothers like myself have jobs outside the home. Meanwhile, the social ties that can help bridge childcare gaps are far weaker than in decades past. For working families who depend on schools as a safe place for their children while they earn a living, snow days can mean lost wages, jeopardizing a position and crippling a family's finances.

While we explore ways to keep kids studying during inclement weather, we must also create legislation that protects parents who must work from home -- or miss work entirely.

The possibility for kids to continue their schoolwork remotely via electronics is promising, especially for older students for whom academic pressure is so high. But for families with young or special-needs children who require constant supervision, these programs leave most working parents shrugging while they frantically scroll through their contacts in search of a babysitter, coordinate with other parents and desperately try to reschedule meetings in the event that no childcare can be found.

School closings are not just a quaint childhood rite-of-passage (though I fondly remember watching "The Price Is Right" and munching on grilled cheese sandwiches and tomato soup). Instead, they highlight corporate and government policies that lag far behind the changing realities of most U.S. families - the majority of whom depend on jobs and schools that do not always support working parents.

While we continue to find ways to keep students studying even while snowed in, we must also put muscle into legislation that forces businesses to grant parents the option to work from home when weather shuts down schools, and prohibit the penalizing of caregivers who must miss work when their kids are home on those days.

This is also a call of action to parents. The onus is on you and me to stitch together networks in our communities, coordinate emergency child care systems and otherwise support one another in times of crises - crises like record snowfalls that shut down schools.

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On Snow Days, Help Parents Work From Home, Too

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Like other working parents, I'm fixated on the radio each morning because of the recent winter weather. No news merely means more bundling of my kids, ages 3 and 5, before a gusty trek to the bus stop. But a school shutdown means a chaotic struggle to find a sitter and rejigger my work schedule.

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FAQ's about their Remote Learning Days

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Remote Learning Day FAQs / Remote Learning Day FAQs

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This is a blog post about remote learning days, written by a teacher. In it, she offers a list of possible at home learning activities that connect with current learning objectives in school.

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First of all, let me say this at the outset - I DO NOT BELIEVE THAT THE FOLLOWING SUGGESTIONS ARE BETTER THAN BEING IN SCHOOL ON A WINTER DAY. I'll probably have to say that over and over again because people challenge me over and over again on the topic.

We've had so many snow days this year that I've actually lost count and need to ask the district office for the current projected last day of school. To make matters worse, the last two snow cancellations have been 2-day stretches; one was a Thursday-Friday combo so students were out of school for four days in a row. Then, they came back for Monday and were out Tuesday-Wednesday.

If you're a teacher in the middle of a unit or a book, you already understand the problem here. That topic you started two or three weeks ago will need to be restarted. Students have forgotten the math algorithm you were teaching because they haven't practiced and turned it into muscle memory. YOU probably can't remember where you left off in that book and your students have certainly lost the plot. And, you are thinking about the so-called "end of year" tests which are rapidly approaching. (I say "so-called" because they test the standards to be taught by the end of the year but are given one to three months before the end of the year.)

Nothing beats the interaction between students and their teachers and peers for learning. After all, we know that learning is a social activity and that educators create the best environments for learning. But sometimes it simply isn't possible or safe to be in school due to severe weather, a leaking roof, or a failed heating system. What then? The traditional answer has been to add missed days to the end of the year. This does nothing to address the interruption in learning that occurs over snow days. It doesn't push back the state-mandated testing so that it aligns with the change in where students are in the curriculum. It doesn't take into consideration that most elementary schools and many middle and high schools do not have air conditioning and have miserable ventilation so that late June brings sweltering classrooms that endanger student health, not to mention learning.

A few years ago, our district attempted to take the lead in making a change. Sadly, of the three options that were put forward, the School Committee chose the worst of the three. Every student in grades 1-12 was given a "blizzard bag" project to be done later in the year, not during the snow days, that was meant to replace the lost time on learning from the missed days. While the topic of the project, Bees/Pollination, was noble, the additional work was not connected to what students had been learning and was overwhelming, having been assigned on top of what students were already doing. It resulted in a near-universal verdict that this was not how we wanted to do things. Unfortunately, the public now equates any attempt to be innovative about school cancelations with this model.

There is a better way, which was the one recommended by teachers, and for which I continue to advocate. Thanks to advances in meteorology, school cancelations are rarely unanticipated, so with a little preparation, teachers can make sure students have an opportunity to make progress on days when they cannot make it to school without snowshoes or an inflatable boat.

Here are some simple examples from my own experience as a fifth-grade teacher:

read the next chapter in our core book and answer questions about the reading;

write a reflection on a topic from our master list;

revise your current writing project for (insert focus area here);

practice math equations/problems (I always had extra practice sheets);

watch one or more of the science or social studies videos I've assigned through Discovery Education and be prepared to discuss when we return to school (assuming you have power);

Read this Cobblestone (history) or National Geographic (science) article and highlight the portions you would like to discuss or learn more about (no electricity needed);

Depending upon the special (Art/Music/PE) we would have on that day, do the activity assigned by that teacher;

Of course, there are always people who think this is a gambit by teachers to get out of working. Let's just put aside the fact that I don't know an educator who doesn't use snow days to catch up on lesson planning, grading, IEPs, professional development, or parent communication. Teachers wouldn't get the time off on a remote/virtual learning day. Depending upon the situation (grade level, subject, available resources) teachers would provide support for students and families. A few options could be responding to questions via email, conversation threads on Google Classroom, Google Hangouts, checking in on student work through Docs. Obviously, if everyone loses power, then there would have to be alternatives but it wouldn't be that difficult to work something out so that districts would feel that they were getting their money's worth out of the teacher day.

Again, there is no question that being in school would provide a richer, more supportive, learning experience for most students. But if we are willing to let go of the "snow day" of the past, we can not only keep students immersed in their learning, but they may even discover that learning can happen outside of the classroom.

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First of all, let me say this at the outset - I DO NOT BELIEVE THAT THE FOLLOWING SUGGESTIONS ARE BETTER THAN BEING IN SCHOOL ON A WINTER DAY. I'll probably have to say that over and over again because people challenge me over and over again on the topic.

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This site is geared toward the annual nation-wide Digital Learning Day. However, it's rich bank of resources could be used to plan remote learning days. Great stuff here!

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February, 2020

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MAINE, USA - When snow days in Maine pile up, it can become a problem for school districts.

Too many days off means schools are forced to add days to the end of their school year.

Maranacook area schools, in RSU 38, is trying to prevent that from happening.

The district made a decision Wednesday to launch its remote learning day or Blizzard Bag Day as it's called.

It's a pilot program.

Basically, it's a snow day that doesn't count as a day off because the students are required to do school work.

Already this season RSU 38 has had five snow days. They have seven built into their school year calendar. Any more and they'll have to tack on additional days in June.

In past years, to help deal with an active winter, the district wanted to come up with some kind of remote learning day, but they couldn't.

"Teachers would say we have the technology, why can't we do something with it? Short answer to that... is the state wouldn't allow it," Superintendent Jay Charette said.

But last year, Charette said the state of Maine said they were open to innovative ideas.

So Charette, a group of teachers, technology experts and administrators came up with a remote learning day plan that was approved by the school district.

And on Wednesday, with news of a storm coming, Charette decided it was time to roll out the plan.

The district's elementary school students received bags or folders from their teachers with assignments from each subject.

The older students were able to take advantage of the school's technology from the comfort of their homes.

"Our students 6-12 all have laptops so we use Google Classroom and Google Docs and that whole suite of tools so they have teachers that are communicating, they're posting assignments students can go right into," Charette said.

Jodi Palmer is the co-owner and general manager of Mika: Maine Isshinryu Karate Academy in Manchester. The academy, which hosts martial arts programs, also offers after-school, summer and snow day camps.

On Thursday, there where almost 20 students there doing their homework on the remote learning day. Palmer and her staff set up tables for the kids to be able to work comfortably.

"We sort of grouped them by grades so if they had any classmates they could ask each other questions if they had any," Palmer said.

Palmer said this is a first for them too, but she likes the idea.

"It gives them the opportunity to not go to school for an extra 3, 4, 5 days into the summer because in Maine it's so short anyway and it's nice to not have to cut into that" Palmer said.

The kids doing their school work at the academy agreed.

8-year-old Hunter Emmons said "The Blizzard Bag was supposed to be a day of school but at home. What that meant was we wouldn't have to cut into the summer which I don't because I won't time with family and friends."

Hunter's sister Paige said, "we were excited because we've never had it before."

All of the teachers, Pre-K through 12 were available via email from 9 a.m.- 3 p.m.

For students who didn't have internet access, the school provided hard copies of assignments or mobile hotspots. The school also distributed lunches to any student who wanted one.

On Friday, the district will pass out surveys to students and parents. On Monday, the staff will receive the surveys to see how efficient the remote learning day was.

The district will report those findings to the state.
RELATED: A Maine snow day through the eyes of 7-year-old Jesse Carroll RELATED: Click for Maine Local Weather Forecast

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A snow day that doesn't count as a day off of school

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MAINE, USA - When snow days in Maine pile up, it can become a problem for school districts. Too many days off means schools are forced to add days to the end of their school year. Maranacook area schools, in RSU 38, is trying to prevent that from happening.