Michigan’s arctic-like winter is brought to you by the number 6.
That’s how many snow days Michigan schools get and hundreds of schools are bumping up against the figure or have already surpassed it.
So what happens to Johnny and Janey’s education if they miss more than six days?
Good question and one that lawmakers are revisiting.
State law orders schools to provide 1,089 hours of instruction and a law adopted last year allowed the schools that surpassed the magic number of six, to add on minutes to each school day to make up the difference.
So if your whiz-kid normally got out of school at 2:30, administrators could extend it to 2:35 to make up the lost education time.
Who’s kidding whom?
Anybody who went to school knows that there is no teaching going on in the last few moments of class as everyone watches the clock waiting for the bell to ring. Consequently adding five minutes pays lip-service to the notion that anybody is learning anything.
At least that’s the opinion of Don Wortruba, who lobbies for the Michigan Association of School Boards.
He favors just forgetting about the lost days unless the number gets too high.
“If we’re going to do it, don’t worry about the extension (the extra time at the end of the day) cause it’s not real. It makes it look like we’re doing the right thing; then let’s just say we’re forgiving “X” amount of days this year.”
But can your kids afford to miss 5 additional days or whatever the number turns out to be on top of the six snow days?
That’s why Rep. Andy Schor (D-Lansing) wants all the days made up even if it means running the school year deeper into June - or at the rate this winter is going, July.
He thinks there is a better solution, which is to create a buffer by opening school before Labor Day. His proposal is buried under a 12-foot snow drift by the tourism lobby.
When it comes to making money or schooling your kids, critics argue the tourism folks want the cash. That's why they fought for years to open school after Labor Day and lawmakers agreed.
As for what legislators will do now is anybody’s guess. Remember as they like to say, it's all about the kids.
Watch "Off the Record with Tim Skubick" online anytime at video.wkar.org