School’s out on April 8 for many kids in the U.S. and Canada. On that date, a full solar eclipse will be visible from Texas to Ontario.
This has prompted some Canadian schools to take action.
“There are risks associated with viewing a solar eclipse,” announced Toronto-area school boards.
These schools are moving their May 17 kid-free professional development day to April 8 “to ensure that students will not be outdoors during the total solar eclipse.”
This seems like a missed opportunity.
“I am baffled, dismayed, and hugely disappointed by this decision,” says one Toronto-area school administrator, who spoke on condition of anonymity. “It is misguided to keep children inside when they could be seeing this event. However, risk-aversion and groupthink are leading the process.”
It does sound that way, at least in Canada. Elsewhere on the eclipse’s path, schools are closing for seemingly the opposite reason: In order to make…
