When seasons change from fall to winter, what is your favorite part of school? Mine is the feeling when you wake up on a school day to the quietness of a snow day. Growing up, I’d always look forward to the mornings when I would wake myself up and not hear my parents rushing to get ready for work. To me, that always meant a snow day.
When I was little, a snowday meant snow angels, snowmen, sledding, and a day full of laughter. As I have gotten older, Alternate Methods of Instruction (AMI) work has become something I have to do during my day off.
Springfield Public Schools (SPS) students are sent home with packets or assigned work online to complete on their snow days. If students fail to complete their AMI work, then they will be counted as absent for the day.
“SPS will utilize an Alternative Method of Instruction (AMI) plan on days that school is canceled due to inclement weather,” based on the information stated on the SPS website.
Students will be given only two real snow days until AMI work is to be completed.
The work that students are assigned on AMI days is a waste of time. My teachers each have us answer a few questions that don’t even contain the classwork or learning from the classes. We have to fill out canvas assignments about our favorite snow day activities and what we’re looking forward to doing that day.
Although they might be easy and fast things to answer, they have absolutely nothing to do with the content in the class. The lack of instruction from teachers only causes lack of learning and willingness from students.
Students are given work on what should be a day off, and it only counts for very few points. The only benefit to doing your AMI work is not being counted absent on a day that you should not even be at school in the first place. The points given for the assignment will make no dent in your grade. So, why even have them?
Before the year 2020, when COVID-19 started, we had no AMI days attached to snow days. Students had snow days with no work, and would come back to school when it was safe. If that worked before, then why doesn’t it now?
Administration believes that a certain number of days out of school requires work, but I don’t think that busy work, worth little to no points, will benefit us.
SPS uses AMI days to benefit the district’s attendance because, if we have higher attendance then, we get more money. But, if students don’t even do the assignments, then all AMI days are doing is making our attendance lower.
Snow days should be a day of rest for everyone, and they should not come along with work for the students or teachers.
