By MATT PIKE
St. Joseph Post
The St. Joseph School District is considering using virtual learning opportunities in place of a traditional snow day.
Assistant Superintendent of Academic and Education Services Ashly McGinnis says the district has had an AMI, or alternative method of instruction, plan in place since the coronavirus pandemic.
McGinnis says though they've been hesitant to put it in place on a snow day because it was discovered during the pandemic kids had a difficult time engaging with virtual learning
"We know it can be a hardship for parents who work, or parents who are not able to be with their kids on that snow day and getting them online to do learning or do those activities in person," McGinnis tells KFEQ Hotline host Barry Birr. "And so, we just want to be thoughtful of that."
McGinnis says so far, the district has used four snow days so far, and have not tapped into those AMI learning days, but are cognizant that it may be something they need to switch too.
McGinnis says they have worked on a detailed AMI learning plan. She says the plan outlines how an AMI day would operate and it's broken down by at every level of education.
"What that would look like is different at every level, it is more hands-on learning, things that can be done in a home with things that you have around the house for the littles," Mcginnis explains. "And then at the older level for secondary there would be an assignment for every class the kid has."
McGinnis says for instance if a student has seven classes, they would have an assignment to submit, which would give credit for academics
McGinnis says implementing these AMI days would also help save the district on attendance.
"Because when we have inclement weather days, if we're on the fence and it's close, if people will want to bring their kids in if the road conditions are iffy," Mcginnis says. "And so, this could be something that we tap into to save us on attendance, provide an opportunity for learning, and then also be recoup attendance."
McGinnis says on a traditional snow day they do not get credit for attendance, but moving to an AMI day would help in getting credit for a school day.