Nova Scotia schools could break records with snow days piling up

An education researcher says Nova Scotia is on pace to break previous records for the number of school days cancelled due to snow.

School officials say teachers are used to adjusting for some closures, but with several weeks of winter left to go, one regional centre for education is actively working to make up time.

Paul Bennett, founder of the Schoolhouse Institute and an adjunct education professor at Saint Mary's University in Halifax, said schools across the province have shut down seven times so far and in the Annapolis Valley, they're up to 11 snow days.

"We're well on the way to setting a new record for school days lost through cancellation because of storms," he said. "This is rivalling the worst years for schools being cancelled."

Bennett has collected data on school closures in Nova Scotia since the turn of the century and said by 2018, the average number has grown to 9.5 snow days in the Annapolis Valley and Cape Breton-Victoria regions.

The average in the Chignecto Central region is eight school closures a year, while in Halifax it's 4.6 snow days.

By the end of January, when most regions had experienced four snow days, the Halifax region had only closed schools three times.

So far this year, all Cape Breton-Victoria schools have been closed at least nine days, with those North of Smokey being called off 13 days.

In the Strait region, all schools have been closed 11 days, with some in northern Inverness County closed up to 13 days.

The East Richmond Education Centre in St. Peter's has been closed 14 days, but three of those were due to flooding from a burst pipe.

Bennett said the largest number of school closures typically occur in March and April.

"I think it's a pretty safe estimate to say that if current trends continue, we will definitely break through previous records," he said.

Bennett said along with chronic absenteeism as a result of the pandemic, snow days are putting students' education at risk.

He said teachers can make some adjustments during the school year, but when the number of storm days is this high, the province should consider making online learning mandatory.