The Anchorage School District has reinstated the use of traditional weather closure days, halting the practice of remote learning on such days. Missed days will be made up by adding more school days at the end of the school year.
This marks a departure from policies adopted during the Covid-19 pandemic. The policy was extended into weather-related school closures over the past three years.
The district’s decision comes amid concerns by many over the loss of valuable instructional time and criticism of the effectiveness of randomly approved remote learning days, which is different than home schooling.
Earlier this month, Department of Education Commissioner Deena Bishop called on schools to stop the practice of weather-related remote learning.
“Bad weather happens, but in prior years we would make up those days. We would say, ‘If we’re out for a day, we’re going to have a day of learning.’ Our practices have slid a little bit, and we’ve become more comfortable with, ‘Let’s call today an e-learning day,’ ” Bishop told the Alaska Board of Education and Early Development, while talking about the skyrocketing levels of absenteeism in Alaska schools.
“One day at a time off … there really is a lack of learning going on. The time on task isn’t there, and it really sets our students and our parents up not to be successful sometimes,” Bishop said.
The MatSu School District responded to Bishop’s comments and immediately changed its policy. Anchorage took a bit more time but reached the same decision.
Under the new Anchorage policy, the next two instances of inclement weather that prevent normal school operations will result in closures with no expectation of remote learning because two days are already built into the academic calendar year.
In the event of more than two weather-related closures, the district will implement make-up days to recover the lost instructional time, days that will be added to the calendar by “repurposing” existing non-student days or extending the school year, the Anchorage School District announced.
To better prepare for future disruptions, the district announced plans to incorporate designated make-up days into upcoming school year calendars. The proactive approach aims to enable families to plan ahead.
Schools will continue to close when road conditions are deemed hazardous. The district emphasized that the updated approach balances safety considerations with efforts to maintain continuity in learning.
Rep. Jamie Allard, who co-chairs the Alaska House Education Committee, welcomed the news and thanked Commissioner Bishop for applying pressure to districts, which have begun to abuse the practice of “remote learning days.”
“I want to thank Commissioner Deena Bishop for working with me to make a change! We didn’t quit fighting until a change was made!” Allard said.
Alaska statutes says students must have 180 days of instruction each school year.
