Coping With Ripples?

This morning, I heard (yet again) about a school that was closed due to a bomb or shooting threat received since the massacre at Virginia Tech this past Monday. I understand the necessity of taking such action. The fiduciary responsibility of school administrators dictates that they protect the children in their care. But what happens to the education of our children if we continue to allow such threats to disrupt classrooms across our country? Do the affected students have to make up the work missed? Do the schools add days to their academic calendars when classroom time is eliminated? How much instructional time is lost due to drills instituted as preparation for the threat that may come tomorrow? Do public schools have contingency plans to continue classroom instruction if and when a school is locked down? If students are sent home, do they log into a virtual academy so they don’t get behind?

Being a homeschool parent, I don’t deal with such questions. I would truly like to know what happens when the proverbial threat “rock” is dropped into the educational “pond.” What sorts of consequential “ripples” do these threats create, and how does the system cope with them? Please, tell me so I will know. Thank you.