Anderson School District 5 Technology Will Eliminate “Snow Days”

(story courtesy of Abe Hardesty, Anderson Independent Mail)

Anderson School District 5 will be the first in South Carolina to try an eLearning program that will eliminate makeup days caused by bad weather.

“With today’s technology, it makes so much sense, from the practical standpoint and financially,” said District 5 Superintendent Tom Wilson, who proposed the idea to the state’s Education Oversight Committee (EOC) in May. “Technology has changed every profession, and we have the technology in place to keep kids working during the snow days and eliminate the makeup days.

“I  think we will be a good model for the state,” he added. “We’ve invested $11 million in Chromebooks in the last five years, and this enables us to make use of it.”

The district has been selected as the state’s pilot program for the upcoming school year.

The eLearning days will enable the district to operate with a firm calendar in 2018-19, with no inclement weather makeup days. If snow or ice hit, students will access assignments via their Chromebooks, which do not require internet service.

Students unable to complete the work because of any technology issues will get a five-day grace period.

 “No longer will we need to run buses mid-June for a makeup day that only a quarter of our students attend,” Wilson said. “We have the resources in Anderson 5, and doing this allows us to utilize those resources to their fullest extent.”

Anna Baldwin, District 5 director of eLearning and integration, said the project will also help parents, who will be able to plan summer activities without having to consider makeup days. The technology also will enhance teachers’ ability to communicate with the students, she said.

Any eLearning days will count toward the 180 school days required by the state.