School Year Longer?

Recently there was an article in the Cedar Rapids Gazette concerning  whether the educational board should extend the school year to an all year around school or extend the school day to 8 a.m. till 5 p.m. like an average work day. Some believe that by extending the school year the United States would improve test scores in the core areas such as math, science and language arts. http://thegazette.com/2011/09/30/should-school-year-and-school-day-be-longer-in-east-iowa/

 

Personally as a student I disagree to an all year around school. I don’t want to be in school all year around. I want to be able to enjoy being a kid while I can because it seems like such a short time before we have to enter the real world of adulthood. You should be able to enjoy it while you can. Most adults would probably agree they would love to experience this little part of childhood again.

Before the school board even considers extending the school year they should actually look at the different countries and their test scores. For example, Finland student s only attend ten more days than we do and they are scored 6^th in math, 2^nd in science and 3^rd in reading. While on the other hand Germany students go 220 days a year and they rank 16^th in math, 13^th in science and 20^th in reading. The United States actually beat them in their reading score, we ranked 17^th. Canada is also ranked really high but they only attend 14 more days. Yes there are countries that go almost year around that rank high like Japan and South Korea but I still don’t think that the days you’re in school help improve your scores that much. 

One thing the board should consider is the number of early out days we have a year. I am not sure whether other countries have these but it is something to look at. I personally like them because it gives me a break from school and I have more time to do my homework. If the school board is considering having us go longer I think first they should eliminate the early out days and see if we improve our scores. 

I don’t think it’s the number of days of school you have in a year but the emphasis you and your family place on when you are actually there. Families in many of the high ranking countries place a lot of importance on education and making sure their children do their best. I think getting families more involved in their child’s education would have a greater impact on test scores than lengthening the school year.