By Grace Kearney, Staff Writer

Winter came in full force this year, but that didn’t slow down the students at Trinity Hall, who used technology to stay constantly submerged in a learning environment, even when not physically in school.

“A benefit of having an online snow day versus taking the day off is that the learning continues and there is no loss of information,” faculty member Melissa Whelan said.

Continuing normal academic work when the weather does not permit attendance at school helps students retain what they learn if weather complications persist and to continue learning outside of the classroom. Though online school snow days are a point of controversy among students, some seemed to appreciate their benefits.

Freshman Emily K. tunes into the online freshman community meeting on a snowy morning from the comfort of her own bed.
Photo courtesy of Trinity Hall’s Facebook page.

“Teachers give you the same amount of work to do at home as you would in class and you just complete it on your laptop,” freshman Christin Jakub said. “Plus there are no extra school days added at the end of the year, so I think it works very well.”

Some students were apprehensive about not being able to experience the feeling of a “true snow day,” but those concerns soon disappeared because the administration balanced the two “online school” snow days with two “no school” snow days.

“I like [online school snow days] because it’s better to have [class] online than to have to extend the school year,” said freshman Hailey Hartnett. “Also you can work at your own speed, so it’s much more relaxed. It still feels like snow day, even though I was nervous that it wouldn’t.”

Although some students would rather sleep or play in the snow all day and leave schoolwork until the snow clears, online school snow days have some support from students who feel the advantages outweigh the disadvantages. “I don’t mind the online school [days],” freshman Silvia Fragale said. “I thought that it would be a bit overwhelming at first…but it’s better than adding days at the end of the year.”