What child hasn't shrieked with glee upon hearing that it's a "snow day" and school is closed? While it may be fun to sleep longer and go sledding, here's an article in Education Next that??looks at??the actual impact of missed instructional days on student learning.
Dave E. Marcotte, public policy professor at University of Maryland, Baltimore County,??and Benjamin Hansen, research associate at IMPAQ International, LLC, compared how Maryland and Colorado schools fared on state tests both in years when there were frequent snow days and in years when there were not. Among their findings, the percentage of students passing math??assessments falls by about one-third to one-half a percentage point for each day school is closed.
In the Ed Next article, Marcotte and Hansen summarize their research as well as the research of others regarding instructional days (Hansen also has written a post on the Ed Next blog). They argue that "this emerging body of research suggests that expanding instructional time is as effective as other commonly discussed education interventions intended to boost learning." They write that "evidence is mounting that expanding instructional time will result in real learning gains."
They do acknowledge that the cost of extending the school year is a concern. And they discuss how "expanding instructional time offers both opportunities and hazards" for the accountability movement.
All in all an interesting read and worth checking out ...