Interesting debate emerging in D.C. about whether or not closing the D.C. schools today, in response to yesterday’s earthquake, was a good decision. Obviously the 13 schools that sustained damage need to be closed until engineers confirm it’s safe for kids and adults to be in the buildings--but that’s only about 10 percent of the system. Complicating this is the fact that DC schools only reopened for the 2010-11 school year on Monday, so a closure this early into the year is extra disruptive, since students are just starting to settle in--and teachers I’ve talked to are pretty unhappy about having a closure this early in the year.
The opinions expressed in Sara Mead’s Policy Notebook are strictly those of the author(s) and do not reflect the opinions or endorsement of Editorial Projects in Education, or any of its publications.