As the snow is piling up this winter, so are the snow days, and that’s putting pressure on students and teachers to make up for lost time.
One of the challenges is that fewer days during the year means less time for students to learn and prepare for standardized tests, which can affect scores and teacher evaluations or whether a school qualifies for grant money. It’s a virtual avalanche of consequences. Connecticut’s standardized testing is done the first few weeks of March.
Some districts take days out of mid-year vacations to keep kids studying but others say it’s better to add days onto the end of the year. Some parents see the pros and cons of both .
Paula Morabito says she’d prefer if schools add days in June because, “people plan for school vacations and…if you bought your school vacation it can make things very difficult.”
But Stephanie Parlapiano says there needs to be a balance and she’d prefer to take days off of mid-year breaks so students end the school year earlier, “you want kids to enjoy the summer, too”