Endangered Species: Summer Vacation
President Obama’s newest school reform idea could have you going to school longer
Students, I sincerely hope you enjoyed your summer this past year, because if President Obama gets his way, it could become extinct.
That’s right, extinct. Just like the dinosaurs, Wooly mammoth, and the Dodo.
Despite the fact that American students spend on average longer hours in school (while we only spend about 180 consecutive days in school a year), President Obama says that they do not spend enough time studying, as opposed to countries like Germany, Japan, and Taiwan.
“Longer school days are not a widely popular idea,” the president said in one of his speeches earlier this year. “…Not in my family, and probably not in yours, but the challenges of a new century demands more time in the classroom.”
So are our beloved summer vacations destined to go the way of the Dodos? Not necessarily. Even if it is approved, Obama’s plan will take some intense planning before initiation. And that’s just saying if it’s approved.
Many parents, students, and teachers are not happy with the proposal. One student from Rockville, MD said that she would “walk right out the door.”
Sophomore Rachael Fogarty of Tecumseh High School feels the same way.
“I think it’s ridiculous.” She said when asked her opinion. “If kids are forced to go all year, they would eventually get tired, and bored, and slack off more.”
However, there are others that disagree with the opinions of the majority. Some teachers say that it will boost students’ retention, thus upping grades and better opportunities for the future. Others say that it could also provide for students that would otherwise not have a safe place to go during the later afternoon hours, therefore keeping them off the streets and out of trouble.
While opinions and views are mixed among families and teachers, President Obama is convinced it is a good idea. He says that kids in America need more time in the classroom because kids in other countries spend more time in school in a day than we Americans do, and their education rates are much higher than our own.
"Young people in other countries are going to school 25, 30 percent longer [in a year] than our students here,” Education Secretary Arne Duncan told the Associated Press. “I just want to level the playing field.”
However, even though summer vacation could be curtailed, that does not mean that kids won’t get their breaks from school.
Instead, they would receive longer spring and winter breaks, as well as two week vacations after every marking period. This would still give kids time to do their normal summer activities, like go with family to places like Florida, or to visit family, or go to summer camp.
So what do you think? How will you feel if instead of three whole months of freedom, you got two weeks every five to nine weeks? Is summer vacation destined to be something our future generations only read about in their text books, and hear from their parents and grandparents?
Perhaps only time will tell…
Sources:
Article information: http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20090927/ap_on_re_us/us_more_school
Obama photo: http://www.ericlee.info/edwards4veep/obama.jpg