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Arkansas House approves bill letting districts use alternative-method instruction days after closures
Summary
After a contentious debate over learning loss and unequal internet access, the Arkansas House passed House Bill 13‑70 to allow school districts to count specified alternative-method instruction (AMI) days in school calendars for making up missed days.
The Arkansas House on March 4 approved House Bill 13‑70, allowing local school districts to include additional days or hours of alternative-method instruction (AMI) in their calendars to make up missed school days after closures caused by weather, utilities outages, threats to safety and other emergency circumstances.
Supporters framed the bill as a tool to give local districts flexibility when campuses are closed for short emergency periods. "This is giving our school districts one more tool in their tool belt to be able to use, giving some local control," Representative Mark Mayberry said while explaining the bill.
Opponents said AMI days risk worsening learning loss and would disproportionately affect students without home internet. "We still have about 30% of Arkansas students in this state who do not have internet access at their house," Representative…
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