WSJ: School In August Gets Low Grades

[IIOY]

Early this month, as her cousins in Michigan spent their summer vacation splashing in area lakes, 11-year-old Ryan Duffin sat learning about the Great Lakes in social-studies class at Richview Middle School in Clarksville, Tenn.

"I could be enjoying my summer, but I'm stuck in class," Ryan complained. "I hate it."

Ryan is one of hundreds of thousands of students whose summer breaks ended early this year as schools from Toppenish, Wash., to Kettering, Ohio, to Harrisburg, Pa., have bucked a long—but waning—tradition of starting classes after Labor Day.

In Los Angeles, the nation's second-largest district, the first school bell rang for 600,000 students on Aug. 14, three weeks earlier than the normal start. In Chicago, more than a third of the district's 675 schools opened Aug. 13, part of a year-round schooling effort that spreads out the school calendar with shorter summer and winter breaks.

Proponents say the August start dates allow more instruction time before students take mandatory state achievement tests and Advanced Placement and college-entrance exams. John Deasy, superintendent of Los Angeles Unified School District, said the new calendar lets students wrap up finals before the three-week winter break and gives high-school students more time to complete college applications. "This was a purely academic decision for us," he said.

But opponents—including tourism groups and many parents—grumble the August school bell ruins summer vacations and punishes businesses that thrive during the summer months.

Ryan's mother, Carol Duffin, was so angered by the early start—which she says has been creeping earlier in her district for years—she launched "Save Tennessee Summers" seven years ago and lobbied state lawmakers unsuccessfully for legislation barring a pre-Labor Day first bell. She "cringed," she said, as she visited a Wal-Mart store around July 4th this year and saw school supplies on display. [Random IIOY edit: hasn't July 4 marked the onset of school sales for a while now? I stopped being shocked by this ages ago]

"We are just wiping the barbecue sauce off our mouths and I am seeing pencil and pens and glue sticks," she said.

The typical U.S. school year runs about 180 days, and the start and end dates are set by states or school districts. Many schools, especially in the North, generally open after Labor Day and wrap up in June. Others, particularly in the South, start in mid-August and end in mid-May, a relic of the agrarian calendar that ensured students were out of school in time for the spring planting season.

In the past decade, testing has become more important, thanks in part to requirements in the 2002 No Child Left Behind Law—used to evaluate students, close low-achieving schools and fire underperforming teachers. Many schools have pushed up the start date to provide more instructional time in hopes it will improve test performance.

Miya Clay, a 6th grader at low-income Dulles School of Excellence in Chicago, started school Monday—the earliest she has even been in class—but she was happy to be there. "It gives me a chance to read lots of books and more time to learn" before taking the state math and reading exams in the spring, she said.

Little research exists on whether earlier starts boost achievement. Some experts say lengthening the school year is more important, because there is ample evidence that some students, especially those who are low-income, suffer setbacks in their learning from being out of school during the long summer vacation. But the current moves by schools to start earlier don't affect the number of days of instruction, which are generally set in teacher contracts.

The U.S. school calendar is unusual, with students typically attending school for 36 weeks, two weeks less than the average for industrialized countries.

In Los Angeles, an earlier start date caused concern among some teachers, parents and students. Ingrid Fey, a social-studies teacher at the Academic Leadership Community High School in South Los Angeles, said the change is an academic boon for her students. But as a parent, she sees the downside: Her 14-year-old son's baseball team has a tournament in Utah next week. She decided to let him skip school and worked with his teacher to send him daily lessons. "I feel uneasy about that decision, but I also know the baseball trip can be a great learning experience," she said.

Tina Bruno, who runs The Coalition for a Traditional School Year, a nonprofit group in San Antonio, Texas, that lobbies against early start dates, said she has fielded scores of calls from parents fighting pre-Labor Day resumption. "Now, we're seeing the backlash," she said.

This year, Alabama and Mississippi passed laws barring schools from opening before the end of August. In Iowa, Gov. Terry Branstad created a task force to study the issue. Iowa law dictates school cannot start before the first week of September, but more than 90% of districts have state waivers that let them open earlier.

Shirley Phillips, the recent president of the Travel Federation of Iowa, which lobbies on behalf of tourism firms and sits on the task force, said a post-Labor Day start helps firms, such as campgrounds and aquatic centers, that thrive in summer. For every day school starts early, businesses in Okoboji, on the shore of Okoboji Lake, lose $1 million in revenue, she said.

"When school starts early, it shuts down businesses and these are the same businesses that pay school taxes," she said.

[rugbywife]

I had no idea the US only had 36 weeks of school. We have 40. I always thought that it seemed like they ended school early but then I just figured they always started earlier too. We pretty much just do the first Tuesday after Labour Day until the last day in June.

[mominatrix]

OK... let me get this straight.

Teachers, administrators, the academic community, all say that going back to school earlier is better for kids' education, particularly in light of the standardized testing that they have to grapple with more and more.

And the BUSINESS community is pissed off because people can't spend as much money on summer crap.

And PARENTS are pissed off because they need, apparently, more time to wipe BBQ sauce off their mouths before starting their kids in school for the fall.

Since when does it matter what the vacation industry has to say about kids' education?


/not a fan of long summer break at all, to begin with. B's current school (they go through second grade, but it's $$$) is on a 12-month schedule. They take a week off here and there, two weeks off at a couple of points, and I think the K-2 room is only M-Th. F they do (optional) enrichment stuff.

...and you know what happens? The kids don't backslide... they don't forget a bunch of stuff over the summer and have to spend a big chunk of time in September gearing up again. It's brilliant. If I could send her to a public school where they did this, I would in a heartbeat.

[IIOY]

Wait for it...

Wait for it...

WAIT FOR IT...

I agree with momi.

However, I would be far happier with a earlier return to school IF it meant that the school year was actually longer. Having summers off is an outdated concept in most areas of the country and needs to end. I would gladly see more money allocated toward education if it meant a longer school year because I see a long-term benefit to society as a whole, not least, economically.

[batsteph]

Here in Virginia schools don't start until after Labor Day. The law mandating that is actually nicknamed the Kings Dominion law, after a well-known amusement park between DC and Richmond, because it's common knowledge that Kings Dominion and other state theme parks (along with the hotel and resort industries, of course) lobbied hard to keep the law in place. Even the governor and state legislators call it that.

School districts in Virginia can submit an appeal asking to start school early, and some do -- usually counties that see a lot of snow days and don't want to see school pushed to mid-summer because of makeup days. The county just west of us starts early.

While I'm emotionally attached to summer vacation, I agree that year-round school would be better for learning. Especially in an area like this one, where so many people's jobs are high-pressure and don't really allow for extended summer vacations anyway. Most parents here have to start scrambling well before school's out in the spring to put together a whole program of summer camps for their kids so they'll have somewhere to put them.

The only real barrier I can see to extending the school year is the increased cost. In some places -- like in Virginia, for example -- summer is stinkin' hot and humid, and running AC in all those schools would be expensive. There'd have to be some budget changes to compensate for the three months of increased utility bills. Lots of buses here, too, which means spending more money on gas and bus driver salaries.

A smaller barrier to change would be accommodating the different school break schedule. Most places with year-round school have short breaks between terms, right? Like, at least a week, sometimes more? What are parents supposed to do with their kids during that time? It's not realistic to expect them to take off work for that period of time, and most of the summer camps around here are staffed by college students who would be unavailable for that kind of work mid-year.

If we could find a way to address those logistical concerns, though, then I think year-round school would absolutely be a great thing for the kids.

Any of you have year-round school where you live? How does it work?

[ChillyMcFreeze]

Aug 18, 2012 9:04:48 GMT -5 batsteph said:

The only real barrier I can see to extending the school year is the increased cost. In some places -- like in Virginia, for example -- summer is stinkin' hot and humid, and running AC in all those schools would be expensive. There'd have to be some budget changes to compensate for the three months of increased utility bills. Lots of buses here, too, which means spending more money on gas and bus driver salaries.

A smaller barrier to change would be accommodating the different school break schedule. Most places with year-round school have short breaks between terms, right? Like, at least a week, sometimes more? What are parents supposed to do with their kids during that time? It's not realistic to expect them to take off work for that period of time, and most of the summer camps around here are staffed by college students who would be unavailable for that kind of work mid-year.

These are the two main concerns here, too. The heat is how summer breaks started in the first place--it was too damn hot to have kids sit inside before the days of A/C. I grew up in GA public schools, and I don't remember ever going back after Labor Day. It was always late August, and we got out in late May. (I could be misremembering the early years, of course.)

Some summer enrichment programs would be a shame to lose, but I understand that the majority of kids sit around glued to the TV all summer. My bigger concern is figuring out a childcare situation. I also grew up in a college town where the university community had the luxury of having a similar break as the kids. That wouldn't be the case with year-round school. Minor gripes, but still concerns.

Overall, year-round school is a great idea. Why do we waste the first 6 weeks going back over what the kids should already know? (FWIW, my teacher DH is vehemently opposed to year-round because he got into this business for two reasons: job security and summers off.)

[eclaires]

We always started in early to mid August growing up. Except one year after Labor Day, because construction ran late on the big remodel/addition to our high school. That sucked because we were in school forever that year it seemed like, plus any snow day was met with mass hysteria due to the lack of flexibility because we started so late.

ANYWAY, that said, all of the Catholic schools in the deanery I grew up in, including the high school, are switching to a year round schedule. This is the first year for it and they went back towards the first of August. They also switched to iPads instead of textbooks this year - which may even be statewide for the diocese - because I heard other schools outside that deanery were doing it too.

Kids here started the 14th, unless you are a Kindergarten student. They start full day the 28th, and between the 14-28th they have 2 half days where they go to school with 4-5 other classmates to get used to it. If I'm being honest, I was so glad when I heard this because I was not ready for Jackson to go to school yet. But it's a brief reprieve and I'm still a hot mess over it. I just want to keep him with me forever and ever. And ever. I'll be THAT MIL some day. /tangent about how I am struggling with letting go of my baby.

[eclaires]

Here's a link to a year round schedule where my BFF's mom is the principal. They have been doing the year round thing for 5-10 years, I believe - I think we were in college when they started it. Anyway, BFF's mom loves it and says she would never go back to a traditional schedule. This is in southern Indiana, btw, where the summer does get pretty hot.

www.lanesville.k12.in.us/cal.htm

[rugbywife]

I'm not going to lie, when parents refer to the benefit of more schooling as a way of solving child care issues it feels like it devalues the significance of the education portion of schooling. I am not a free baby sitter. There is a lot more that goes into education than simply housing and occupying children so that adults can work.

I think there are benefits to having more schooling but it would really depend on how it was structured. I don't think kids need more time sitting in desks and learning basic concepts. I think if there were to be an increase in the number of school days it would be interesting to look at a model where extra-curriculars were mandatory for all students...so have more school days but have the traditional school day run for less hours and instead have designated activity time each day. I think it would help to raise a more well rounded society and would give students more opportunities to practice problem solving and collaboration skills. But it would take money and creative/flexible thinking on the part of politicians...which doesn't usually work well.

edited for an needless word.

[eclaires]

I think any childcare issues would solve themselves if whole districts/communities were going to year round. Right now, obviously the summer is the easiest because that is what the community is used to and that is where the demand is. But if whole districts/communities are going to year round, daycare, camps, etc. will switch their "supply" to what the customers need.

[IIOY]

rugbywife, we had a thread on here not too long ago in which we discussed an expansion of the number of hours in a school day, and it was pretty much universally agreed that with the right funding and a wider variety of activities that *didn't* involve simply sitting at a desk, such a change would be desireable.

We also all agreed that hell would have to freeze over for all the pieces to fall into place to make this happen.

[eclaires]

The dynamics in public education are interesting to me - mostly because I only attended public school for 1.5 years (K and then 1/2 of 2nd grade). The rest was Catholic and from 2nd grade on, I was in the same deanery until 12th grade.

The deanery just had so much power/leeway with deciding how to run the schools. I remember when my high school went to a longer day/block scheduling. They were just like, "yep, board agreed that the longer day & block scheduling is better for academics/learning," and it changed over the summer between my freshman and sophomore years. I'm sure there were funding issues and tuition increases at play, but there was basically no input from anyone but the board and the administration. We went to school from 7:30-3:30, which was roughly 1 hour longer than the public schools.

I mentioned above that the schools switched to a year round schedule recently - well they did it this summer, and while they may have mentioned it before that, it happened quickly with little input from anyone besides the admin/board. Same with the iPads instead of textbooks. Some people like it, some don't, but there was never a drawn out discussion or fight about it. It just was. I know that is because it's a small amount of schools and public education is much broader. It's just interesting to see the differences. I think the private schools have more leeway and control to say "this is what is best for the students and learning environment," without any other outside concerns.

[Michelle]

Aug 18, 2012 8:53:26 GMT -5 IIOY said:

Wait for it...

Wait for it...

WAIT FOR IT...

I agree with momi.

However, I would be far happier with a earlier return to school IF it meant that the school year was actually longer. Having summers off is an outdated concept in most areas of the country and needs to end. I would gladly see more money allocated toward education if it meant a longer school year because I see a long-term benefit to society as a whole, not least, economically.

+1

and +1 to Rugbywife's post too

[rugbywife]

In Ontario private schools have way more leeway too. As long as the school still abides by the Ontario Education Act they can do as they please I think, I don't even think they have to follow Ontario curriculum as strictly or participate in standardized testing since they don't receive tax dollars.

In the public elementary system there are very strict rules regarding instructional time: 1500 minutes a week, 300 minutes a day. Then breaks on top of that, there is more liberty in break times I think. We have two 40-minute breaks at my school, others have a 40 and a 50. But instructional time is consistent across the province, as is prep time for elementary teachers, 240 minutes a week.

[SusanBAnthony]

So one thing I don't understand about the article, is summer vacation isn't any shorter. It is just shifted earlier. Why does that matter?

Ditto being in favor of year round school. I understand that the argument about summer childcare being expensive old seem negative to teachers, but no ones job (other than other teachers) gets z2 months off in the summer,Oslo the childcare thing is a serious issue facing a large percentage of families.

[IIOY]

Aug 18, 2012 11:27:06 GMT -5 SusanBAnthony said:

So one thing I don't understand about the article, is summer vacation isn't any shorter. It is just shifted earlier. Why does that matter?

"Proponents say the August start dates allow more instruction time before students take mandatory state achievement tests and Advanced Placement and college-entrance exams. John Deasy, superintendent of Los Angeles Unified School District, said the new calendar lets students wrap up finals before the three-week winter break and gives high-school students more time to complete college applications."

[Deleted]

Aug 18, 2012 11:29:09 GMT -5 IIOY said:

Aug 18, 2012 11:27:06 GMT -5 SusanBAnthony said:

So one thing I don't understand about the article, is summer vacation isn't any shorter. It is just shifted earlier. Why does that matter?

"Proponents say the August start dates allow more instruction time before students take mandatory state achievement tests and Advanced Placement and college-entrance exams. John Deasy, superintendent of Los Angeles Unified School District, said the new calendar lets students wrap up finals before the three-week winter break and gives high-school students more time to complete college applications."

This was how my school calendar was. My senior year of HS started on Aug. 2. First semester was completely done before Christmas. I actually never took exams after Christmas; that's a completely foreign concept to me.

We had an October fall break. We had two weeks off at Christmas, and our spring break was in early March just like colleges. Graduation was the week before Memorial Day. Summer break was actually only about 9 or 10 weeks.

The district has since moved the start date back 2 or 3 weeks. I do remember that there were some years when all outdoor activities (football practice, marching band practice, etc.) were prohibited during the first week of school because of the heat.

On the one hand, I guess it costs more to cool the buildings during August. On the other, it was generally so fucking hot in August that it's not like I was going to be doing anything other than sitting inside and watching television.

[LoveTrains]

See, the thing i don't get about August school is what districts do that have old schools that don't have air-conditioning. I grew up in South Jersey (just outside of Philly), and August is generally a hot and humid month there. None of the public schools that I attended had air conditioning, and I doubt that they have put in a/c in the 15 years since I graduated from high school.

There is no way that students would be able to sit in classrooms in August that probably approach 100*. Even in early June, it woudl sometimes get to 100* in the classrooms and your butt would just be all sticky in the desk chairs. So nasty and uncomfortable - you can't focus on learning in an environment like that.

[redheadbaker]

Aug 18, 2012 9:04:48 GMT -5 batsteph said:

Any of you have year-round school where you live? How does it work?

S.O. is a teacher, and his school is year-round (it's a tiny, non-profit school for children with autism who require one-on-one education).

Technically, the new school year begins after Labor Day. In addition to federal holidays, they have a week off at Christmas, a few days off around Easter, a week off in early-to-mid summer (this year it was the week of 4th of July), and it used to be two weeks off at the end of August, but parents complained and starting next year, it will only be a week.

During the summer, the school week is Monday through Thursday, the rest of the year, it's Monday through Friday.

[Deleted]

amamba, I think that's a totally legit concern. What sucks is that it's a total crapshoot with regard to the weather if you don't have AC. Around here, May and June were insufferably hot and humid this year, but August is shaping up to be fantastic. But other years, May and June have been great, and August has been brutal.

[Deleted]

School keeps starting here earlier and earlier and it is just a race to see which county can get the most "instructional" days in before the state test in May.

I'd much rather start in Late Aug/Early Sept for host of reasons including I don't like walking to school in 100 degree weather.

[Deleted]

How many vacations are normal people taking? Wouldn't families just take a week in July instead of August?

I get the amusement park thing, but that doesn't seem like a good enough reason to not have school.

[batsteph]

Aug 18, 2012 14:44:44 GMT -5 @kcpokergal said:

How many vacations are normal people taking? Wouldn't families just take a week in July instead of August?

I get the amusement park thing, but that doesn't seem like a good enough reason to not have school.

Around here at least, the amusement parks' position isn't so much that they'd be losing out on revenue from families that wouldn't be visiting the park because their kids are already in school, although I'm sure that's part of it. It's more that they rely on having high school students around to staff the parks, and if schools start before Labor Day, then the parks will run into staffing problems and will have to shut down early or start reduced hours early. That's the revenue loss they say concerns them.

[lilibet]

Aug 18, 2012 11:27:06 GMT -5 SusanBAnthony said:

So one thing I don't understand about the article, is summer vacation isn't any shorter. It is just shifted earlier. Why does that matter?

School keeps starting earlier here and people complain because quite often in late May/early June it isn't really warm enough to fully enjoy the pool or the beaches at the lakes but in mid to late August it is. I guess that may be why some people would rather go into early June and not go back until Sept vs getting out in late May and going back mid August.

School just started here yesterday. When I was in school we usually had a half day the Friday before Labor Day and then started full days that Tuesday. But the last few years they've built 2 new elementary schools and done total overhauls on the middle and high school and they all have AC now so I guess the heat isn't an issue. We just broke a crazy long string of 100+ degree days here. There was some talk a couple years ago about going to year round but too many parents work at the local university and community college and they complained that it wouldn't work with their schedules.

As a kid I did nothing but read, watch tv, and "play" softball (aka screw around in the outfield) so it wouldn't have been the end of the world for me.

[mominatrix]

Aug 18, 2012 9:04:48 GMT -5 batsteph said:

Any of you have year-round school where you live? How does it work?

DD's teeny tiny school is on a 12 month calendar. They do preschool through second grade.

The K-2 room is in session Monday through Thursday. Friday is an optional day (parents pay extra for it) that's extra "enrichment" (more fun) stuff.

The longest "break" of the year is coming up: school 'ends' on this coming Wednesday, then is back in session on 9/5. There's also 2 weeks off around Christmas, a week off in March, a week off in June... etc.

My understanding is that as long as they get to that magic 180 days / year, they're OK with the regulators.

[batsteph]

Aug 18, 2012 16:57:56 GMT -5 mominatrix said:

Aug 18, 2012 9:04:48 GMT -5 batsteph said:

Any of you have year-round school where you live? How does it work?

DD's teeny tiny school is on a 12 month calendar. They do preschool through second grade.

The K-2 room is in session Monday through Thursday. Friday is an optional day (parents pay extra for it) that's extra "enrichment" (more fun) stuff.

The longest "break" of the year is coming up: school 'ends' on this coming Wednesday, then is back in session on 9/5. There's also 2 weeks off around Christmas, a week off in March, a week off in June... etc.

My understanding is that as long as they get to that magic 180 days / year, they're OK with the regulators.

That sounds pretty manageable to me. There's not too much time for parents who both work to figure out how to arrange childcare.

My cousin teaches elementary at a year-round school, and they're roughly in session for two months then out for three weeks. That cycle continues throughout the year. That, I think, sounds like it could be really challenging for parents.

[taratru]

I would love year round school, both as a teacher and a parent.

As it is, I hate going back as early as we do, simply because of the heat. I'd much rather go back in September and stay until June because June isn't as hot as August, ever.

Also, ditto rugbywife. If year round school creates positive growth for students, but the reasoning against it is child care concerns, I'd say that's a reflection of the true value American society places on education.

[Deleted]

I think the major problem is we aren't on a national schedule and it sucks.

SD wanted to camp at Berkelee this summer. At the camp they do auditions and give a lot of scholarship money. The camp is 5 weeks and goes from the middle of July to the middle of August. She went back to school Aug. 1. She can't miss 3 weeks of school for camp and it is her dream school.

I'm also bitter that I want to do a vacation in Maine next summer with my sisters. I would love to go in August during Blueberry season so my kids can go to my aunt's farm and such, but we are going in early July now and the water will still be too cold to swim.

[frlcb]

Aug 18, 2012 9:14:46 GMT -5 ChillyMcFreeze said:

I grew up in GA public schools, and I don't remember ever going back after Labor Day. It was always late August, and we got out in late May. (I could be misremembering the early years, of course.)

I grew up in GA public schools as well and we always started in August (and I am in my 30s). Many school districts here started Aug 1, and all were in by Aug 13. But they are out before Memorial Day.

[rugbywife]

I am going to guess that in Southern states the school year begins in August because the point of having summers off is historically based on the crop season and I imagine most harvesting was complete, or close to complete, in the latter parts of the summer further south. In Northern states it is probably closer to September because harvest would be later in the season. This is just a presumption based on the fact that summers off in the education system was due to children being used to complete farm work during the busy season.