Is Year Round School A Good Idea?
Our school system as we know it now, has become very routine to us. Two months of summer, winter, and spring break is when we always have our vacations. Lately, a provincial committee came up with the idea of year-round schooling. This would mean a new calendar and schedule for students and parents. This is a very new ideaand a few school districts in the United States have attempted and there seem to be positive results. Regardless of the testimonials, parents and students will have questions regarding this new approach to education. When would our breaks be?Will there be more or less school? Will this interfere with my extracurricular activities?
The year-round school system can be organized two ways. Nine weeks of class with a four week break in between, or 12 weeks of class with a five week break in between. Regardless of the choice, the number of school days and professional days remains the same. The article we were given says that both systems could work together in one school although, I am not sure how that would work. The system we use now is described to be quite old-fashioned as if it has run its course. The two months of summer holidays were actually put in place because of the farmers and farmer's children.The children were needed to help with maintaining the farms it during the summer. Most places on the west coast of Canada today, don't require their children to work on farms anymore.
With any idea there are pros and cons of that go with it. Year-round schooling seems to have many pros but this doesn't come without any negative aspects. The transition into this school system would be a rocky one. Parents might not have jobs that would work with their children's new system and extra childcare might be needed. Afterschool activities and teams run on a very distinct weekly schedule. If half of their students came from a district that practice the year-round schooling and the other half came from a district that practice the old system how would they create a schedule to fit both? Half the kids would be off on vacation while the other half is still in school.
There are many positive aspects to gear long schooling. The cost of operation would be lowered. Students looking for jobs would have a better chance because of the breaks that are not during the peak season for applicants (summer and Christmas). There would be less competition for students. Research gathered from schools that have tried out the system have reported less dropouts. This is great news for parents with troubled kids.Another benefit of the school system, is that it would get rid of classroom shortages. This would make our school experience much more enjoyable.
I personally have no strong views regarding this topic. If the school board wanted to try it, I would except with a neutral but optimisitc outlook. The idea is well thought out but also flawed. There are very few ideas in the world that will please everyone. I believe that it is worth giving a trial run to see how students take to it. The outcome seems to be more positive than negative from other schools. This will be something that require a leap of faith from society.