The article that I read was about a school in Massachusetts that extended its school days in order to give teachers more time to teach their students. As a result, the school did better on state mandated exams. It is really hard to argue with this article, when it is pretty clear that extending school hours had a positive effect on the school. It would be ridiculous to stop this for the reason that students don't want to be in school any longer then they have to. All I know is I'm glad I finished high school before anyone thought of this.
Clearly extending the day does work because Massachusetts has seen a lot of results. However, how far are people willing to take this? The longer you make the school day, the more likely your going to cut into other things like after school activities and sports. Although educators may not see those things as a big deal, for the students it is. School is not just about learning, it is also where students gain socialization skills and it is a place where they can try out their skills. If extra curricular activities are taken away as well as sports, students might find it hard to socialize with other people. Also, the more time students are spending at school the less they are spending at home or at a job, which could effective their lives on a larger scale.
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2 comments:
I agree, I am very glad my school day was not any longer than it was. And I also agree that we should worry about short-handing sports and clubs by taking time away from the students. Sometimes these things are just as important to a student, and they have been proven to keep kids behaving and in school.
I don't see how extending the school day is necessary, though I will not dispute the results of improved tests. I personally believe we should be working on teaching teachers to use their class time more effectively instead of giving up and, in the eyes of many students I'm sure, wasting time for other just as valuable activities.
I think some educators and administrators are justified in feeling that school days are just not long enought to teach. Everyone complains that having to adhere to the curriculum is a detriment to the students and their creativity, so why not alot more time?
I personally feel that thinking along these lines is completely ludicrous. Time is integral to teaching, but this problem is brought on by standards restrictions. If those are eased then pehaps teachers can teach kids effectively. I wonder, Are teachers being compensated for the hundreds of extra hours they are being forced to work?
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