They haven’t even taken in considerations of the teachers
and other school employees input on the year round school calendar.
Wednesday, May 16, 2012
Year Round School Calendar
West Virginia is trying to
implement a new school calendar. The school year would not be the normal nine months
that we are now using to but be a year round school calendar. They say that the
students would not lose much instructional time as they do now and there would be
less need for review time than there is now. I disagree with the year round
school year calendar for many reasons. One is that they are not taking in
consideration of the many parents who work and may not be able to accommodate child
care. Also would interfere with many families who plan summer vacations at the
time their children are out of school for the three months summer break.
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I completly agree with you. Teachers should be asked their opinons when ultimately it's the teachers who will have to conform to this policy. We should also include the opinons of the parents to see if they have adequate child care especially on the elementary level. Also they have to take in consideration, the special education studetns.
ReplyDeleteI can totally understand the feel for a need for full-year schooling for out children. We are lacking in many areas in education in comparrison to other nations in the world. However, I do not believe that year-round schooling is the answer to our problem. I think it would make it difficult for our children who are so used to summer break. If we are going to switch to such a systme, we need to do our research first. How is this going to affect the student? How is this going to financially affect each family in the state? How is this going to really effect our learning process. I know there are schools right now in West Virginia that are doing year-round schooling, which I think is a great way to see if it is truly successful. We must not jump into everything we see other states doing. Look at consolidation - most states are going back to smaller schools and our state is still consolidating. We really need to be patient and research all of our options.
ReplyDeleteI agree that proper research needs to take place before any major changes, such as overhauling the academic calendar, take place. However, I would say that I am generally in favor of year-round schools. Firstly, we should ask ourselves "Why do we get three months off in the summer?" The answer is that we USED to need that time off to help work in the fields. Obviously, this is not longer a valid reason to maintain the current calendar. The next reason is "tradition". I am not against traditions, but this particular one is anachronistic at best, a deterrent against a better education at worst.
ReplyDeleteLet's go point by point. Firstly, couldn't we implement a year-round calendar that actually INCREASES time spent in school, rather than simply maintaining the status quo? If breaks, whether extended weekends or full weeks, are given more often, children will still have time to rest and enjoy themselves, without the extremely detrimental effects of losing knowledge during three months of mental atrophy.
Secondly, such a change in the calendar would not have to be immediate. If you set a date, let's say 5 years from now, at which point the calendar will change, both parents and teachers have time to prepare themselves for the adjustment. This includes finding accommodations for the new breaks. Childcare business, who see most of their business during summer, would also have time to change their business model to meet the change in demand.
Thirdly, I do believe the teachers will benefit from not having to implement as much review. Why waste class time reviewing something the students had mastered three months ago, only to lose during the summer? The alternative of a year round system does away with the perpetual pothole of instruction.
I think that year round school would eliminate many problems faced by parents and school faculty during the summer months. Instead of having to pay for summer camps and babysitters, children are still going to FREE public school. Alos, underprivillaged kids, who's only reliable source of food is the school lunch, get more meals then on during the regular school year. Also, teachers won't have to get little summer jobs to keep the income flowing because in some household a teacher's small salary is the ONLY source of income. July is the most travled summer month so people can just move their vacations to that time. A problem like moving a vacation is nothing compared to what WV would gain from going year round.
ReplyDeleteI agree with the comment made by R2Duncan2. I think that a year round school system would eliminate many of the problems faced by parents and teachers alike. The parents would no longer have to find alternative child care during the summer months when the children aren't in school, and teachers would no longer have to spend the first few weeks of the school year reviewing what the students should already know but have forgotten due to the break. The children still end up getting about the same amount of time off of school in a year round program, it is just spread out throughout the school year instead of being lumped together during the summer. I understand that at first the transition would be difficult, but I believe that the benefits out way any problems that would arrise during the transition period.
ReplyDelete