“Disappointed, frustrated and angry.”
That is how New York City’s Public Schools chancellor David Banks described how he felt after the “remote-learning test” the bureaucrats decided they would impose on children in place of giving them a snow day off on Tuesday.
“Disappointed, frustrated and angry,” is surely how millions of public school children felt too, when they were informed they would be “remote-learning,” instead of going to the park to build snowmen when they saw the forecast.
The weather in New York wasn’t anything apocalyptic, but for a city scant on public funding at the moment, the half day of flurries was enough to shutter schools.
In times past, that would be one of the most fun days of the year for the 1.1 million kids attending the city’s 1,800 public schools. But now, New York has a “no snow day” policy that was implemented in 2022, as the Big Apple makes every last attempt, to make absolutely sure to kill the city’s vibe.
And those attempts are working— so well, that even “remote-learning” fell apart.
The initiative was called a “test,” which the city failed.
Snow on the ground around The Pond in Central Park Tuesday, Feb. 13, 2024 in Manhattan, New York. (Barry Williams for NY Daily News via Getty)
“As I said, this was a test. I don’t think that we passed this test,” Banks said at a news briefing Tuesday— a perfect metaphor for remote education.
Reports began to surface Tuesday morning that parents and students were having difficulty signing on to the remote-learning platform, which the city apparently did “a lot of work” preparing.
Banks pointed to the platform it was on run on, IBM, as “not ready for primetime.” Mayor Eric Adams (D) also blamed the platform, lamenting, “I’m hoping this was a teaching moment for [IBM] as well.”
“We’ll work harder to do better next time,” Banks added. (Please don’t.)
City parents have been decrying the ban on snow days since it was introduced in 2022, with one astutely pointing out that kids “will miss out on one of the only good things about cold weather,” adding that the decision is “denying my family the magic of snow days.”
In a column published by one parent, she points out that remote-learning causes “a rise in temper tantrums, anxiety, and a poor ability to manage emotions, especially among the young elementary-aged children during remote learning,” according to a Harvard study she cites— while playing outside on a snowy day has the opposite effect on kids’ moods.
“I’m sad for all the things my daughter has lost during the formative years of 4 to 6 because of the pandemic. She doesn’t remember life before masks. Or starting school without having a Q-tip shoved up her nose for rapid testing. Or that people once shared food. Or that kids blew out candles on birthday cakes (everyone does cupcakes now). Or that her grandparents were more vibrant before Covid isolated them” the mother, Amy Klein, wrote. “I wish she didn’t have to lose snow days, too.”
Banks joked at the time of the announcement of the new rules in 2022, “So, sorry, kids! No more snow days, but it’s gonna be good for you!” Expert strikes again.
“This is not Eric’s theory or logic,” the Big Apple mayor said at the time. “This is the logic of every professional that I’ve heard.” Maybe that’s the problem.
But it bears keeping in mind that this bright idea is from the city that robbed all joy from children over the past few years when they needlessly shuttered schools, and parks (!!) ostensibly to prevent kids from getting a virus that would not harm them. Because the “logic” of “professionals” said to.
And now, more of the same. Maybe time to stop looking to “experts” to raise children.
Emma-Jo Morris is the Politics Editor at Breitbart News. Email her at
