Throughout recent years and the aftermath of COVID, technology and the education system have changed and developed.  During COVID, we used programs such as Zoom and Google Meet to participate in classes and continue learning while remaining safe and staying at home.  In years since, these virtual classes have often been implemented on snow days.  Many argue against this, urging for no school on these historically excused days.

“From my perspective, I feel that snow days should probably remain a break away from screens, as students have always enjoyed that time to relax and play in the snow.  I’m not entirely sure how virtual learning would fit into that tradition,” said freshman Iris Kim.

Similarly to this student, many argue that snow days are a necessary break for students, providing time to rest, play in the snow, and reduce stress.  They say that taking a day off from screens and assignments is important for mental health and that virtual snow days can feel like extra homework rather than enjoying a fun break from school.  

While this perspective has merit, the reality is that short breaks like snow days can actually disrupt learning, especially in high school, where lessons build on each other daily.  Remote snow days allow students to continue the curriculum from home, keeping them on track, and students have safety benefits of staying indoors during harsh weather.  

By using virtual snow days thoughtfully, students can have the best of both worlds: they remain safe at home while maintaining their learning. Thus, snow days should be remote.

To start, making snow days virtual does not decrease the total number of school days.  In fact they may cause school boards to implement school days on periods that would normally be a recess, like towards the end of the year or on breaks.  

The New York State Education Department’s website explicitly states that “In New York, remote learning provided on snow or emergency closure days counts toward the state’s 180-day minimum instructional requirement, so districts don’t have to add extra days later to make up for those closures.”  This rule allows students to enjoy their well deserved break at the end of the year, rather than dealing with additional days that have been added on.

“I think snow days are great, but if we make them virtual, it helps us avoid adding extra days at the end of the year.  It definitely keeps everything on schedule, which seems pretty practical,” said freshman Eden Coren.  

In addition to this benefit, remote learning on snow days allows students to continue with prior lessons and keeps students engaged in the curriculum.  Without virtual learning, students may find their learning disrupted and have trouble getting back on track after a snow day.  

Think about it—after weekends, breaks and summer vacation, it is much more difficult to remember prior lessons and class activities as opposed to normal school days.  Remote learning provides the much needed continuation of class that students need, while still allowing them to remain at home through harsh weather.  

Studies of school closures from Cornell University show that interruptions to instruction can reduce standardized test scores — with one analysis finding that additional closure days were associated with about a 1% drop overall and roughly a 1.8% decline in high-school-aged students’ achievement.  

Further studies from the University of South Florida show that each school day lost to unscheduled closures was linked to lower pass rates on state math and reading tests — about 0.5 % fewer students passing for each day missed in some studies.

“With virtual snow days, we can keep up with our coursework and avoid falling behind. It means we won’t have to reschedule tests or catch up on missed assignments later, keeping our focus intact,” said freshman Carmela Polydorou.  

Thus, it is clear that we must implement remote learning on snow days.  Additional days of school will not have to be added at the end of the year— something that would have to happen if school was completely canceled due to snow.  Students also will retain prior lessons better and keep up with school activities as opposed to the distraction and lack of focus caused by a short recess like snow days.  Studies prove this concept, expressing how students’ achievements will drop and grades will lower.  Therefore, snow days should be virtual.