Since Hurricane Sandy tore through the town, Massapequa students and teachers have been wondering what will be done to make up for the time lost to the storm. Massapequa schools were closed for six days as a result of Sandy, and that leaves days to make-up for legal purposes as well as instructional purposes.
On one hand, Massapequa must open school for only five more days which were supposed to be vacation days (one of the six days lost was made-up on Election Day). This must be done to fulfill the state’s requirement of 180 instructional days, a requirement which will not be waived, despite rumors that the governor’s office would pardon the lost days due to the extremity of the natural disaster.
On Thursday, December 6 Superintendent Mr. Charles Sulc proposed a plan to make-up the lost days which was approved by an unanimous vote from the Board of Education. Mr. Sulc suggested that the district make up the days during what was supposed to be the Winter Break, from Tuesday, February 19 to Friday, February 22. The vacation day on Monday will remain because it is a national holiday, Presidents Day. Additionally, students will attend school on Friday, May 24. However, Spring Break will “remain intact.”
Mr. Sulc explained the calendar revision as a necessary, albeit undesirable solution to the problem of making up the days lost to Sandy. According to Mr. Sulc, the New York State Education Commissioner John B. King Jr. has warned Long Island school districts that they “must exhaust the possibility of using any vacation days afforded to [them] or else risk losing state aid.” Superintendent Sulc informed those who attended the Board meeting that the district would lose 145,000 dollars in state aid for every day the district should have been open and was closed.
In addition to these makeup days, the district has decided to conduct regular instructional days during the traditional midterm week, during which students usually come in for a couple hours a day to take exams. While students generally miss five days of instruction for these exams, this year midterm week will consist of Monday off due to Martin Luther King Jr. Day, Tuesday as a testing day in order to administer the English Regents Exam, and three days of regular school Wednesday through Friday.
“The primary goal of substituting instructional days for the traditional midterm week is to recuperate the days of learning lost in the beginning of the second quarter and to ensure maximum preparation for Advanced Placement (AP) exams in May,” principal Dr. Williams said.
Dr. Williams mentioned another concern many members of the school community have about the days lost to Hurricane Sandy, the AP curricula. While most high school courses culminate in a final examination in June (often created by MHS teachers), AP courses end in nationally standardized tests which always occur in early to mid May, regardless of regional weather complications. Therefore, AP teachers may be inclined to support extra instructional days, which can provide maximum preparation for the tests their students will take in May.
“I think it is a good idea that midterms are postponed because my students would not be ready for a traditional midterm in January; the extra instructional days will also allow us to prepare for the AP exam,” AP Calculus teacher Kathleen O’Hara said. “In place of the traditional midterm, we may give a cumulative exam in February.”
While many teachers and administrators see the replacement of midterm week as an essential academic maneuver, the schedule change has received mixed reactions from students. Many do not understand why extra instructional days have been added to midterm week if the days lost to Sandy are to be made up during vacation time.
“I can understand taking away February break, but adding full instructional days to midterm week seems to be a little much,” senior Ryan Cooney said.
Senior Nicole Passariello agreed with Cooney. “I think it is unfortunate that we have to go to school during midterm week because midterm week usually provides a nice break from the school routine.”
Assistant to the superintendent Dr. Thomas Fasano explained that the instructional days during midterm week are still necessary, despite the make-up days in February, because they ensure that all students will be fully prepared for AP and final exams.
Regardless of student and community feedback, these decisions are final. Students will have full school days for the last three days of midterm week and the Winter Break has been reduced to a three day weekend. Students and teachers will not like going to school in the middle of February, but this is the price we must pay for an unexpected hiatus in the fall. Unfortunately, everything in life has a trade-off.