Niagara Falls superintendent: 3 or 4 years of summer school is needed Niagara Falls Superintendent Mark Laurrie says students who suffered learning losses because of remote instruction will need summertime instruction to catch-up. Author: Steve Brown, Scott May Published: 7:06 PM EDT April 26, 2021 Updated: 7:07 PM EDT April 26, 2021 BUFFALO, N.Y. — “Learning losses.” That’s the term the New York State Education Department uses to describe the effect on K-12 students who did not learn as well with remote instruction. The pandemic and governmental restrictions forced schools to offer classes online or a mixture of in-person and remote learning. The students who fared the worst are the youngest says Niagara Falls Superintendent Mark Laurrie.