Are year-round schools a good idea that should be adopted by private and public schools?

Topic:
Education Debates

28 Contributors
in this discussion.

Yes
43% of users

  • The summer vacation is an antiquated system based on letting kids return to the farms to help out during harvests.

    There is no reason that children should have to leave school during the summer, because very few children live in the agricultural system that required extra labor during the summers. Year-round schools allow children to continue learning at a steady clip, without having to return to cover information they've already learned.

    Yes LivingJimmy

  • YES!!

    I think year-round schools would provide much more education than in a school that doesn't go year-round..this means they get longer breaks.....more stuff to learn than a regular school....and and for summer break they would have only a month and a half...but that includes not forgetting most of what was taught during the year...This means they would be smarter than they would with regular school

    Yes Anonymous

  • YES!

    I think that year-round school is a good idea. Kids would need more review after a longer time away from school. Shorter vacations would lesson the amount of time in accomplishing this. Kids would still need a break from the stress, and a proper amount of time would be given for that. With a longer vacation, you run out of excitement about a quarter of the way through, so why not spread out the days? This idea would keep more kids out of trouble, and provide a better learning system.

    Yes Anonymous

  • Smaller class sizes, increased enrollment, childhood obesity

    Schools can increase enrollment by up to 1/3 and decrease class sizes. This both improves the educational environment and allows for funding that would go towards building further schools to go towards year-round schooling. Teachers are not necessarily teaching more, as the school year is spread out rather than increased. Also, summer is the biggest time of increased childhood obesity. Year-round schooling allows for both increased participation in sports and increased day to day activity in our youth. Financially, fewer required schools will help support year round schooling. Plus, decreased childhood obesity will have an even larger positive impact on health care spending. It's time we focus on our obesity problem. Children and teachers need to relax over summer break? Three months is way more than the needed time, plus students get the breaks anyways, just more spread out. No, because children look forward to summer break? ok well lets just give all the kids A's and baby them even more. The current 3-month summer school system is outdated, as it was originally used for kids to help on the farm. Time for our school systems to get with the program.

    Yes Anonymous

  • Children in America should not take the summers off as this policy is leading to the United States falling behind in education.

    Summers off from schooling was placed in effect when the United States was largely a farming country, when children were required to work the fields. Year-round schooling would give children the opportunity to learn more and not have a large break each year away from classwork, as well as maximizing the use of school facilities during the summer downtime.

    Yes SlyHymie

  • They forget everything over the summer.

    We should look to the world's BEST education systems and follow their examples. They all utilize a quarterly system. The summer off system was, after all, designed around the CROP SEASON! I think that might be a little outdated now!

    Yes Anonymous

  • Year round schools is better preparation for life.

    The original purpose of the 9 month school year, with summers off, was to make the children available to help on their parents farm. This is no longer needed in our industrialized/computerized society, and is actually a detriment to learning, as children tend to forget things over the long summer break. Schools should run year round, as the workaday world does, to better prepare young people for their lives and improve retention and learning.

    Yes laceymarya

  • Year round schools are a great idea that should be adopted in the public school system.

    Year round schooling is great educationally because the traditional system creates a situation where children need about two months of review at the beginning of the school year to make up for the information they have forgotten over the long summer break. Children educated year round will learn more. Also, the school buildings will be more efficiently used which will be a more economic use of tax dollars.

    Yes TaintedHamel

  • Year-round schools are a good idea and should be adopted because American children are falling behind.

    Year-round schools are a good idea and should be adopted because American children are falling behind. It doesn't mean that kids wouldn't get vacations or have to work very hard all the time, but the summers-off schedule was created when the US was agrarian and the kids were needed to help farm. Childcare is a big issue now with so many working parents that it would help them financially to not have to find care for kids for the summer.

    Yes H0bi3Invader

  • I think the year-round school model is an excellent idea.

    There are so many things that kids learn in school that aren't used during the summer. One example is foreign language. My son was so excited when he started learning French in the 8th grade, but since he didn't have the opportunity to speak it during the summer, he lost interest in it then really struggled with it when the next school year started. And think of all the time that gets wasted every year because the first couple of weeks of many subjects tends to be spent reviewing information previously learned. The year-round model should be adopted for all schools, although I imagine it would be more difficult to impose this on a private school.

    Yes Iy3rJame

  • Year-round schools are advantageous because they would provide stability and consistency.

    As a parent, I would support year round schools because of he stability and consistency that they provide. Oftentimes, a parent's schedule and a child's schedule have to be forced to be compatible and it's the parent - the breadwinner - who has to make the sacrifice. Vacations, holidays, half days, etc... are examples of these times. If schools were made to be year round I believe that it would cut down on parent's angst over finding appropriate supervision during long vacations and it would save childcare expenses. It's easier to request that your employer give you one or two days off, than to ask them to give you weeks off because you can't find alternative plans for your children. And, year round schools would keep children on track. Kids need something to do. They don't need an abundance of free time because they get bored easily and waste it. When you keep them away from school for too long, they have to be reconditioned all over again. And, it can be a battle to get them back into school mode after a long period of living carefree.

    Yes MohaI0v35

  • Year-Round School are a good idea, but should not be made mandatory.

    Year-round school has been shown to be a good model in helping students retain what they learn. However, it should not be made mandatory for school districts or private schools because each individual school district knows what is best for its students in that particular area. Parents should have choice in what kind of school calendar would work best for their family.

    Yes KourtneyB
Voice Your Opinion
No
57% of users

  • Year-round schools are not a good idea, as the costs would outweigh the benefits.

    The cost of keeping school buildings open year-round would be enormous and would overshadow any benefits. Teacher and support staff contracts would need to be renegotiated, while building, transportation and upkeep costs would explode. Many areas of the country would need to install air conditioning units in all of their buildings.

    No C0rtKenka

  • No. This move will not improve quality of education.

    Instead, the focus at schools should be shifted to courses, which will eventually provide maximal potential to students. For example, science, math, foreign languages, and IT. Also, underperfroming teachers are individuals, who ruin kids' future. Therefore, they should be terminated without any second thought. The quality of classroom hours matters, not their simple quantity. Summer breaks give opportunities to children to leave healthier and to learn outside of classroom.

    No Anonymous

  • divorced families

    i am an 18 year old senior coming from a divorced family. my younger sisters 16 and 12 both live with my mom and i live with my dad. they are on year round school and i am not. because their schedule is so different from mine, i cant ever visit them on breaks. i get out of school june 22 and they get out may 24 or something. which sucks because i would only have about 8 weeks to see them and thats not a lot when youre seperated by 600 miles with little money flowing in. so i say get rid of year round schools. i wanna see my sisters more

    No Anonymous

  • why should we have year round school

    now there shouldn't be any year round school because student now with regular school days hate schools already so why should there be year round school.If it is because America needs to be strong and needs money,adults need to have year round work day because we can't do no good now.If you said in the future America need more power ,thust me,by then we go to work America would be really STRONG

    No Anonymous

  • why not?!

    there are many reasons why schools shouldn't accept a year-round calendar. First, the idea of accepting the calendar just to improve eductation is just dumb because studies have not been able to come to conclusions on whether or not it improves eductation. Second, Extracurricular activities could suffer because year round schools make getting to these hightly improbable to attend. Thirdly, summer jobs and acitivities can suffer from year-round schools. Finally, year-round schools can mess up family vacations and reunions and everyone knows family is super important.

    No Anonymous

  • We have a life! skating and my freinds are the only thing i have to live for...

    i know knowleadge is power but your life is better then any knowledge. there is some good in year round but i say like there 99.99% bad in it. kids would stress even more,more bullys will be created and that would cause more suicide. doesent seem like a good thing right? im in 6th grade so elementary school ppl might not think school is hard but im in 6th grade and in A.I.G which is even harder!!! i can barely handle the amount of work i have now. i have freinds at home and id like to have breaks to see them. summer vacation.skating and my freinds are the only thing i have to live for...

    No Anonymous

  • Loosing Focus, Friendship, Family

    If students attend a school that is year round I don't belive that is a good idea. Students would start loosing focus. Myself, being a student, knows how hard it is to concentrate on schoolwork for a long time. I look forward to summer and the warm weather that season provides. It doesn't make much sense to me to have many small breaks during the year instead of having amlost three months to enjoy the warm weather with your friends from other schools that may now have year round school. I have many friends that attend a different school than I and even though both schools are not year round it is very difficult to find a time when we all have school off. Just think how difficult it would be if it was year round! I wouldn't see my other friends for a long time. Also, if you have other brothers and sisters that go to a different school than you because of age or perspective, like myself, then you understand how different schedules are. If you all went to a non-year round school then you would have the entire summer to plan a vacation with your family and spend quality time with them. These are the reasons why I think that year round school would be unconvienent for yourself, friends, and family.

    No Anonymous

  • Year round schools are fraught with problems as is any school system unfortunately. No perfect solutions.

    In warmer climates (Arizona) all schools would have to make sure they are air conditioned (costing tax payers millions) and all of the staff that are on hiatus during the summer would be back on the payroll again, straining an already very taxed school budget system. Additionally many families count on the summer time to travel and spend quality time together. Without this, family stresses would increase and come out at school.

    No Ramon Griffith

  • Children and teachers need summer break to relax and refresh themselves in order to return ready to learn.

    Children spend too much wasted time as it is in schools. We do not need to extend the time they are in school, it should be shortened and intensified allowing more learning to occur. Several short breaks will only mean more time spent reviewing. Yes, students do lose a little over summer break, but they would also lose over each of the shorter breaks. There is more to life than sitting in a classroom - and I am a 20 plus year teacher. I have seen all the wasted time.

    No 54IInferno

  • I don't think year-round schools are a good idea because of economical and development reasons.

    I don't think year-round schools are a good idea because of economical and development reasons. High school students help the economy because they are able to work full-time in the summer in positions that most adults prefer not to do (such as running rides at an entertainment park, working retail, etc.). Additionally, this gives them experience to help shape them as a better adult. Furthermore, year-round school is taxing on children and they need a break in order to better absorb the information and to help break apart the different levels in school. Year-round school does not give sufficient time to absorb information learned and would be awkward in determining which level the child should be in.

    No ObaICheese

  • I oppose year-round schools, because children look forward to the summer break.

    I oppose year-round schools. For years children have looked forward to summer. Families plan vacations during the summer and kids also look forward to the summer activities. Besides, it would be hard to keep children focused on schooling year around. I believe they would loss interest in subjects. A summer break gives children a much needed rest.

    No RaouICyber

  • Year round schools would cause a problem for both parents and students.

    Children need time to be children. Year round schools do not give children the opportunity to have experiences outside of the classroom. In addition to a needed break for students, summer vacation also gives farmers the chance to have their children help on the farm. This is also an important time for the tourism industry. Families take their much-needed vacations over summer break. Changing to a year-round school system would cause problems for many people.

    No VasilBuddy

  • Year round schools are a bad idea because kids and teachers alike really enjoy the break.

    While the benefits of going to school year round may sound good at first, it may result in frustrated faculty, irritated students, and would not allow kids to have the cherished "Summer" time that so many of us got to enjoy when we were growing up. Many summer time businesses may suffer as well, which may cost jobs for many of those whose primary employment deals with kids and working with them during the summer time such as sports leagues and camps.

    No R3ubHockey

  • Education comes from many sources, not just school, and children would be better off if allowed more free time to explore learning on their own.

    Schools, year-round or otherwise, provide one component of education, but they are not the only worthwhile source of learning in a persons' life. Breaks in the school year, such as a short winter break or a long summer break, allow children the opportunity to pursue their own styles of learning and interests, which will be an important skill for them to have when they grow up.

    No Wynn354

  • I don't agree with year round schooling, kids should be able to get the proper education needed in a regular school year.

    I do think you can over do it with education demands and blow yourself out. I think that we should improve or educational so they meet the standards of other countries. A lot of children benefit from a little down time. Parents also need to spend some times with their kids outside the school system also. Let's start giving kids reading assignments or summer projects to keep their educational motivation going.

    No C0ImEIite

  • Year round schools are not a good idea, because kids need their summer break.

    Year round school wouldn't make the actual education any better or worse but what it would do is steal a piece of a child's youth. If a child goes to school all year round then he or she might as well be an adult with a job. The summer break is one of the most free and blissfully irresponsible moments of anyone's life, and this should not be taken away.

    No TwoVic
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Are year-round schools a good idea that should be adopted by private and public schools?
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