CORNWALL, Ontario – There have been quite a few days this year where school buses were cancelled. In late January, there was a week where buses ran on only one day.
Just this week, the week of Valentine’s Day, schools were actually closed for two days because of a heavy snowstorm.
As it stands right now, the 2018-2019 school year looks like it might have a high total of days where kids miss school.
In the 2017-2018 school year, there were 11 “snow days” according to the Upper Canada District School Board (UCDSB). So far in the 2018-2019 school year there have been nine, and with a few more weeks of winter, there is a chance there will be more.
Despite nearly two weeks worth of classes being wiped from the calendar, the UCDSB does not plan to add any additional days to make up for that time.
“The Ministry of Education approves the school year calendar in the spring for the upcoming school year. Collective agreements with various employee groups reflect that approved school year calendar. A school board cannot simply add days to a school year calendar to make up for snow days,” said April Scott-Clarke, Interim Manager for Communications for the UCDSB.
Scott-Clarke pointed out that even if buses are cancelled, schools usually remain open, and learning can still happen.
“On days that transportation is cancelled, schools are open and teachers are in classrooms,” she said. “So, while the instruction that had been planned for that day may need to be altered, learning is still happening.”
