Your daughter, scrolling through Instagram, acknowledges your presence with a surly grunt. Angela Epstein So why do schools get away with it? Message from the President: COVID-19 | 2021 Winter Commencement Celebration. Thanks to online learning, earning a doctoral degree in education has never been so convenient. *The National Center for Education Statistics, Schools and Staffing Survey, U.S. Department of Education on the internet at https://nces.ed.gov/surveys/sass/tables/sass0708_035_s1s.asp. Supporting this notion is the fact that U.S. teachers already spend more time in the classroom than most other developed nations,§ many of which have higher student achievement. In particular, a Doctor of Education (EdD) degree program can help you gain critical thinking and analytical skills that can aid you in the evaluation and determination of issues, such as longer school days. England's schoolchildren should have shorter holidays and spend more time in the classroom, Michael Gove said on Thursday. Sacrifices have to be made. The number one reason for lengthening the school day is to provide teachers with more time for instruction. I understand that such calls, emails, and messages may be sent using automated technology. Over the last century, humans have acquired a staggering amount of knowledge and understanding. Reasons Why Schools Should Have Longer School Days 1081 Words | 5 Pages. 9am to 3.30pm, Two weeks off between terms. This summer is supposed to be a good one as well! *. Space should not be a problem. The Boston Teachers Union strongly disagrees. What about students who enjoy independent study better? Summer holidays vary greatly from country to country. Comment: Why the last week of school term is more important than you might think. Well-off children often already use the summer to broaden their minds and burnish their college applications at pricey camps or doing summer jobs found through connections. School is good for education so if you have more holidays education is … School holidays haven’t always been long. It makes sense that we now need to spend more time educating children, especially in the STEM fields, where knowledge is advancing rapidly and where job opportunities remain plentiful. Kaytee, 12, Plymouth, England Longer school days is a really good idea. People are not quite as abled to keep up with the continuing growth rate. Many school buildings sit idle in the summer. With the summer holidays rolling out across Australia you can almost feel the collective sigh from parents everywhere who have school-age kids – for some it will be relief, others trepidation….. There are, of course, some educational advantages to the longer school day, but there are also drawbacks. Walker, Global Study: U.S. Although a longer school day means less free time, certain components of school could be included as part of the day so that the loss is tempered. With a campus-based Doctor of Education program, you would have to drive to class and attended courses at specific, often inconvenient times. Long holidays definitely strain the budgets of poor families, since free school meals stop and extra child care kicks in. Australia. Other public services do not simply vanish for a quarter of the year. Copyright © The Economist Newspaper Limited 2021. Youngsters will hate the idea of a longer school year. It’s possible that changes in teaching strategy and improvements in educational materials could offer a much more efficient way to boost academic achievement. Education does not directly increase GDP. So do those in America, where their parents, unless they are teachers, have an average of only three weeks off a year, among the shortest holidays in the rich world. If your response is mixed, you're not alone. The 6.5 hour school day—and the long summer break most schools take—originated at a time when children had to help work family farms and ranches. Not all students fall behind, if exam results are higher each year, most students must not be falling behind, shortening school holidays would be a ridiculously complex process just to give a small minority an advantage. Summer holidays vary greatly from country to … Many grown-ups will object to it, too. As much as you may have fond memories of your school holidays, among teachers, parents,and policy makers, there is a lot of debate over how long a school break should be. One study from the American South found that this “summer learning loss” could be as high as a quarter of the year’s education. Companies should let them take a bit more, since burnt-out workers are less productive. The Richard W. Riley College of Education and Leadership, College of Social and Behavioral Sciences, Doctor of Education (EdD) degree program online, https://nces.ed.gov/surveys/sass/tables/sass0708_035_s1s.asp, www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2017/02/15/u-s-students-internationally-math-science, www.nber.org/papers/w19464?utm_campaign=ntw&utm_medium=email&utm_source=ntw, http://neatoday.org/2015/12/04/global-study-u-s-educators-spend-hours-teaching-wide-pay-gap-remains, The Pros and Cons of Working in an Emergency Room. A longer school day could make participating in extracurriculars more difficult. This is because of the definition of "holiday". For example, students in private schools or in affluent school districts usually receive more parental support at home… When asked about the duration of the annual break, which goes on … Certain recreational activities, such as … Most children attend school for six to seven hours a day. DeSilver, Pew Research Center, U.S. Students’ Academic Achievement Still Lags That of Their Peers in Many Other Countries, on the internet at www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2017/02/15/u-s-students-internationally-math-science. Especially the summer holidays, because people want to enjoy the summer while they can. The average Japanese lower-secondary class is more than 50% larger than the average British one, but Japanese children get better results. How teachers should be compensated for a longer school day and whether people other than teachers should be employed to work with students during an extended school day in order to lessen the burden on teachers are two major questions raised by school administrators, parents and teachers. Keeping students in school longer requires a lot of additional expenditures, including teacher salaries and facility upkeep. Long school holidays can also be backed by citing the way in which schools have become overly academic and too exam focused in recent years, which requires a considerably longer holiday break from such a ‘marathon pumping of knowledge,’ and it makes great sense! If you’re a teacher looking for ways to boost student achievement, you should consider enrolling in a graduate program for teachers. Plus, online Doctor of Education programs offer flexible scheduling that lets you choose when in the day you want to attend class. The Daily Telegraph thinks holidays should be capped at four weeks. Walden University is accredited by The Higher Learning Commission, www.hlcommission.org. * Given that U.S. students’ test scores lag behind the scores in other developed nations,† the question has to be asked: Should we be devoting more time to K–12 education? The school day was originally created to meet the needs of farmers. Therefore, long school holidays do not directly reduce real output. However, the National Center for Time and Learning reports that schools with extended days are in session for close to eight hours daily and students spend, on average, 200 additional hours in school … Pinning the blame on summer holidays … A longer school day can help alleviate some of the childcare burdens parents currently face. Extending the school day could be an important step toward securing a strong future. In countries where the school day is longer students gain superior results on standardised tests. Yes, it would cost money, but there are ways to pay for it. But the summer could also be a time for different kinds of learning: critical thinking, practical skills, financial literacy, work placements with local firms—schools should be free to experiment. "I think school holidays should not be shorter because it gives you the opportunity to develop other important skills by just being adventurous and playing with your friends." But, for their children, six weeks out of class is plenty. A shorter school day can bring physical, social and … Alexander found that the poorest kids “outlearn” their wealthier peers in terms of knowledge gained during the academic year, but during the summer months they fall further behind. They published a piece in 2016 arguing literacy and numeracy sc… Children in the U.S. spend, on average, 6.64 hours in school a day for 180 days a year. YOU return from work on a muggy August evening. Is that really what you want for your darlings? The Importance of Kids School Holidays. It causes parents more stress. Well yes in fact a longer vacation will be associated with many benefits such as increased social life, health benefits, and educational plus financial gains. 8am to 3pm, 15 weeks holidays Fill out the form and we will contact you to provide information about furthering your education. It would be unthinkable for hospitals or the police to do so. Children in Italy and Turkey get a whopping three months. More than 40% of Britons think school summer holidays should be shorter, according to the results of a Sky Data poll. One of the benefits of school holidays is the time that families can spend together. Longer breaks such as the winter holidays allow families an opportunity to reconnect. Over the last century, humans have … Trump’s legacy—the shame and the opportunity. Children would get up early and help with chores, go to school and then help out on the farm until sundown. But instead of taking off much of the summertime, year-round school programs take a series of shorter breaks throughout the year. Which means it’s never been so possible to enhance your ability to improve student learning. In the short term, there will be no change in the productivity of the economy. If students Walden University is an accredited institution offering a Doctor of Education (EdD) degree program online. You may opt out at any time. Although some schools with longer school days do show higher test scores, it is difficult to link the test scores directly to more hours of instruction because there are many other variables. Research supports the premise that longer school days improve the overall quality of instruction which can be provided for students. All rights reserved. The focus for students moves away from school and onto family and culture. Students need time to relax and de-stress. Schools should help the rest catch up. United States. The Agrarian calendar is rooted in the past. But, when you choose to earn an EdD degree online, you can complete your coursework right from home. §T. One is to have larger classes. Sceptics also note that, although those barely rested South Korean pupils do superbly in exams, they are often miserable. But plenty of Western children could usefully spend a bit longer at their books. To boost these scores, some lawmakers and educators are pressing for longer school days and shorter summer vacations. The reasons why children from poor backgrounds do badly at school are complex; social, economic, psychological and educational factors all play a role. Sweden. Long holidays definitely strain the budgets of poor families, since free school meals stop and extra child care kicks in. If anyone changes the school holidays, it should be longer! Many parents are obsessed with teacher-to-pupil ratios, but there is scant evidence that they make much difference. To fill the gap, working parents have to arrange for childcare, enroll their kids in an after-school program, or simply work less. As part of an EdD degree program, you’ll apply solutions to real-world problems, examine diverse perspectives, and learn how to effectively communicate your ideas to different stakeholders. This is a more serious question than it sounds (see article). al., Instruction Time, Classroom Quality, and Academic Achievement, The National Bureau of Economic Research, on the internet at www.nber.org/papers/w19464?utm_campaign=ntw&utm_medium=email&utm_source=ntw. "I don't think schools should be longer because when school ends, you have a lot of homework to do, and if we get home really late, we won't be … This can cause a lot of headaches and financial stress. One reason school holidays should not be longer during the school year in the United States is because law requires that schools be open for a minimum number of instructional days each year. The number one reason for lengthening the school day is to provide teachers with more time for instruction. Holidays give families an opportunity to spend time together and celebrate. Rivkin, et. Not for the first time, you ask yourself: why are school summer holidays so insufferably long? A holiday that a parent wants to take during the school season is not a good reason to take a child out of school, period. Are you or your spouse an active or retired U.S. military service member living outside the United States? If students take long holidays, there is going to be little change in long-term productivity of the economy. This article appeared in the Leaders section of the print edition under the headline "Down with summer holidays", Sign up to our free daily newsletter, The Economist today, Published since September 1843 to take part in “a severe contest between intelligence, which presses forward, and an unworthy, timid ignorance obstructing our progress.”. If the U.S. is to stay competitive globally, we must produce an educated populace. Though school children DO enjoy a lot of holidays, I personally feel that they should have more. I think that some parents are being selfish and using the high prices of vacation packages as a mask for their own issues. 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