Bacon's Rebellion

Democracy Thrives in Sunlight

How Many School Days Did Your District Lose Last Year?

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by

James A. Bacon
in

by James A. Bacon

In our never-ending quest to provide Virginia citizens the data they can use to hold their public officials accountable, Bacon’s Rebellion ranks Virginia’s school districts by the number of days short they fell from the 180-day standard enshrined in state law. Between the COVID-19 epidemic and Governor Ralph Northam’s spring break shutdown order, it was a challenging year. To be sure, uncertainty was rampant and school boards had tough decisions to make. But some school districts did a superior job to others in keeping the classrooms open for students.

According to data extracted from the 2019-2020 State Superintendent’s Report, Buckingham County had the smallest shortfall — 41 days. The City of Galax had the biggest — 68 days. This is only one metric to use in gauging your school board’s performance, but it’s an important one. Demand answers!

For a list of all school districts in Virginia…

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24 responses to “How Many School Days Did Your District Lose Last Year?”

  1. wpeabody.fcta Avatar
    wpeabody.fcta

    full years pay for 190 days?
    240 days for everyone else.

    1. James Wyatt Whitehead V Avatar
      James Wyatt Whitehead V

      Teachers are only paid to work 190 days. The payroll department spreads the check out over 24 pay periods. When I first started teaching you were not paid for half of June and all of July/August. No check. So you had to set aside some money for the summer or work a summer job which is what we did in those days.

      1. Matt Adams Avatar
        Matt Adams

        My father did drivers ed during the summer and student council during the year to bump that income.

  2. Maria Paluzsay Avatar
    Maria Paluzsay

    This data is in-classroom hours, or does it include virtual hours? As a parent of an 8th grader and an 11th grader working from home through the “school day” I can verify that virtual hours shouldn’t count for anything except wasted time. At best it’s an intro session for what they should be learning. Posted grades are irrelevant – actual gaining of knowledge around here, with my full time involvement, struggles to be 25%.

  3. SuburbanWoman Avatar
    SuburbanWoman

    Why is 180 such a magical number? Homeschool parents don’t force students to sit 180 days for 6 hours per day. The school day and school year should be re evaluated to catch up with modern times.

  4. James Wyatt Whitehead V Avatar
    James Wyatt Whitehead V

    Great statistics Mr. Bacon. I plan to use this to motivate the Fauquier school board to require summer school.

  5. SuburbanWoman Avatar
    SuburbanWoman

    Many teachers across the state are contracted for 200 days. If you start out at 40k per year with benefits- you are making 200.oo per day. So if they didn’t teach for 68 days should they have been “docked” 200 per day? Should they be allowed to use up sick and personal days? Did they continue to accumulate sick days though not working? What about bus drivers paid but not working? Cafeteria staffs worked, supposedly administrators worked but obviously didn’t create plans to get students back to classrooms.

  6. ksmith8953 Avatar
    ksmith8953

    Even though this year isn’t as bad by the number of days missed, by actual seat time, 5 1/2 hours per day, it is. How many kids are playing video games on one laptop while they listen to the teacher on another lap time. How long are the actual virtual days? I don’t think each totals 5 1/2 hours per day. In actuality, it is probably worse. So let’s say that kids spend 3 hrs per day actually with a teacher learning “new content”. That leaves 2.5 hours x 180 days is 450 hours / 5.5 is nearer to 82 days lost.

  7. ksmith8953 Avatar
    ksmith8953

    Even though this year isn’t as bad by the number of days missed, by actual seat time, 5 1/2 hours per day, it is. How many kids are playing video games on one laptop while they listen to the teacher on another lap time. How long are the actual virtual days? I don’t think each totals 5 1/2 hours per day. In actuality, it is probably worse. So let’s say that kids spend 3 hrs per day actually with a teacher learning “new content”. That leaves 2.5 hours x 180 days is 450 hours / 5.5 is nearer to 82 days lost.

  8. wpeabody.fcta Avatar
    wpeabody.fcta

    full years pay for 190 days?
    240 days for everyone else.

    1. James Wyatt Whitehead V Avatar
      James Wyatt Whitehead V

      Teachers are only paid to work 190 days. The payroll department spreads the check out over 24 pay periods. When I first started teaching you were not paid for half of June and all of July/August. No check. So you had to set aside some money for the summer or work a summer job which is what we did in those days.

      1. Matt Adams Avatar
        Matt Adams

        My father did drivers ed during the summer and student council during the year to bump that income.

  9. Maria Paluzsay Avatar
    Maria Paluzsay

    This data is in-classroom hours, or does it include virtual hours? As a parent of an 8th grader and an 11th grader working from home through the “school day” I can verify that virtual hours shouldn’t count for anything except wasted time. At best it’s an intro session for what they should be learning. Posted grades are irrelevant – actual gaining of knowledge around here, with my full time involvement, struggles to be 25%.

  10. SuburbanWoman Avatar
    SuburbanWoman

    Why is 180 such a magical number? Homeschool parents don’t force students to sit 180 days for 6 hours per day. The school day and school year should be re evaluated to catch up with modern times.

  11. James Wyatt Whitehead V Avatar
    James Wyatt Whitehead V

    Great statistics Mr. Bacon. I plan to use this to motivate the Fauquier school board to require summer school.

  12. SuburbanWoman Avatar
    SuburbanWoman

    Many teachers across the state are contracted for 200 days. If you start out at 40k per year with benefits- you are making 200.oo per day. So if they didn’t teach for 68 days should they have been “docked” 200 per day? Should they be allowed to use up sick and personal days? Did they continue to accumulate sick days though not working? What about bus drivers paid but not working? Cafeteria staffs worked, supposedly administrators worked but obviously didn’t create plans to get students back to classrooms.

  13. Maria Paluzsay Avatar
    Maria Paluzsay

    The venom toward the teachers is undeserved. In my district I have teachers who answer my emails and grade tests at all hours, 7 days a week. If ever I doubted public school teachers (because I think they get burnt out by the bureaucracy, not because I question their desire to teach), that doubt is completely gone. Our teachers are volunteer tutoring after school just to try to save their students who are somewhere between flopping around like a fish on land and said fish in an ice coma in the cooler.

    Now talk about docking a certain governor’s pay and some public health officials and I’m behind you.

    1. James A. Bacon Avatar
      James A. Bacon

      Virginia has some extraordinary public school teachers who go above and beyond what is expected of them, and some teachers who…. don’t. And then, at the bottom of the scale, there are teacher’s unions.

  14. Maria Paluzsay Avatar
    Maria Paluzsay

    The venom toward the teachers is undeserved. In my district I have teachers who answer my emails and grade tests at all hours, 7 days a week. If ever I doubted public school teachers (because I think they get burnt out by the bureaucracy, not because I question their desire to teach), that doubt is completely gone. Our teachers are volunteer tutoring after school just to try to save their students who are somewhere between flopping around like a fish on land and said fish in an ice coma in the cooler.

    Now talk about docking a certain governor’s pay and some public health officials and I’m behind you.

    1. James A. Bacon Avatar
      James A. Bacon

      Virginia has some extraordinary public school teachers who go above and beyond what is expected of them, and some teachers who…. don’t. And then, at the bottom of the scale, there are teacher’s unions.

  15. Nancy_Naive Avatar
    Nancy_Naive

    “Among occupational groups, the highest unionization rates in 2020 were in protective service occupations (36.6 percent) and in education, training, and library occupations (35.9 percent).”

    “A survey by Educators for Excellence found that 54 percent of teachers in 2020 felt that union membership provided them with “feelings of pride and solidarity,” up from 46 percent in 2018. In addition, a little more than half of teachers who do not belong to the union say they are likely to join their union next year.”

    Yea! ReQublicans! You’re winners!

  16. SuburbanWoman Avatar
    SuburbanWoman

    You are going to have local Board of Supervisors argue regarding funding 130 days versus 180 days. Some are so politically driven they will want to know why teachers continued to receive pay. Some are beginning to insert themselves (wrongfully) in the school issues. This is why you have two separate boards.
    Some students are doing great with virtual courses, some are struggling, some have poor internet connections and some have families who are either not able to help or refuse to help. My bet – the majority of students who are failing are just not putting forth any effort at all.
    Teachers are frustrated, parents are frustrated, politicians are using this as a political weapon and children are stuck in the middle.

  17. Nancy_Naive Avatar
    Nancy_Naive

    “Among occupational groups, the highest unionization rates in 2020 were in protective service occupations (36.6 percent) and in education, training, and library occupations (35.9 percent).”

    “A survey by Educators for Excellence found that 54 percent of teachers in 2020 felt that union membership provided them with “feelings of pride and solidarity,” up from 46 percent in 2018. In addition, a little more than half of teachers who do not belong to the union say they are likely to join their union next year.”

    Yea! ReQublicans! You’re winners!

  18. SuburbanWoman Avatar
    SuburbanWoman

    You are going to have local Board of Supervisors argue regarding funding 130 days versus 180 days. Some are so politically driven they will want to know why teachers continued to receive pay. Some are beginning to insert themselves (wrongfully) in the school issues. This is why you have two separate boards.
    Some students are doing great with virtual courses, some are struggling, some have poor internet connections and some have families who are either not able to help or refuse to help. My bet – the majority of students who are failing are just not putting forth any effort at all.
    Teachers are frustrated, parents are frustrated, politicians are using this as a political weapon and children are stuck in the middle.

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