Should our newfound remote education skills be the end of the snow day?

By Christine Nick

Just before the holiday season went into full swing in December, a number of states on the East Coast were faced with yet another challenge in the second consecutive school year defined by unimaginable hurdles. A Norâ€easter was forecasted and the specter of a snow day loomed in the collective consciousness of students, teachers, and families everywhere. Would the magical, floating holidays of no religious or political significance, celebrated by many for their sheer scarcity be a thing of the past? 

    As is often the case in education, districts made a variety of decisions on how to best answer the snow day question. But perhaps the best solution came from Jefferson County, West Virginia schools superintendent Bondy Shay Gibson, whose viral letter not only announced a day off but also acknowledged that thereâ€s more to value in a snow day than simply not having to attend class on a certain day, taking even a short unstructured break from an activity has been shown to foster social skills, reduce stress, and help boost memory. Indeed, for those whose districts opted for a snow day, it may have been the most normal thing to happen all year. 

The fate of the snow day is one of the many question marks facing education in a post-pandemic world. Long-term school closures caused by the pandemic have forced districts to develop remote teaching methods, but just because a minor disruption of single-day school closure can be mitigated, should it?  Inarguably, schools provide more than material covered in lessons and disruption to the other things that come from our schools, meals, safety, counseling, and other services, the true heart of the argument to maintain the Snow Day practice, is the respite from the predictability of school life. You might never win the lottery, but, if you live in a temperate zone, youâ€ll probably win an unexpected break from your regularly scheduled activities. And, as any teacher or student will tell you, thatâ€s a welcome experience. Even if itâ€s just for a day.

2020 taught educators how to use technological tools to reach students in almost any circumstance, no matter where they were. Moving forward, perhaps the greatest thing to learn is when itâ€s best to use those tools and when it might just be better to pretend they are not an option.