I was noticing in this morning's news that President Obama is considering a plan to lengthen our public school's days or year and just wondered how many Americans agree that our children are getting too far behind other nation's children in educational academics.
Since I no longer have school age children, my opinion probably isn't worth that much; I do, however have several grandchildren attending various grades of public school and I tend to agree with President Obama. I am
for anything that will help our children on the long haul. I know that many families and 99.9% of school-age children would balk at the idea of a longer school day or a longer school year. The idea does have its up side:
- Kids would learn more and their grades would be more apt to improve.
- Families, which require a babysitter for the younger after-school students, may be helped by possibly no longer needing that service. Some public schools are already on a 10-hour day.
- Full-day babysitters would not be needed for the extra weeks added to a longer school year.
- A longer school year is an advantage to underprivileged children as they continue to receive breakfasts and lunches that they might not get at home.
- Only-child children would continue to enjoy the companionship of other children that they might not otherwise have.
Some disadvantages of such a program would probably be a rise in taxes, as the longer school day or longer school year would surely add to the school's expenses. I do feel that a 10-hour school day
would be too much for a child. But I do think I would be more receptive to a longer school year. I know that most States have their school year still based on the old schedule that allowed for children to be out of school to work on the farm during the planting and harvesting seasons of the year. This is a practice that is not really plausible in this day and age. Few children are required to work on the farm as they were when I was a child.
Developing a plan that would work to perfection for everyone across the nation, we all know is not feasible. But a plan that would be acceptable to the majority and a plan that would improve the education and chances for success of our nations most promising resource (our children), would be a plan we should all support.
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