Free Market Education

Free Market Education

There have been many arguments about year round schooling versus traditional schooling. This article, posted by Education Week, goes on to explain why year round schooling is better than traditional schooling. Advocates believe that year round schooling would increase academic achievement. The problem is that some people want to implement year round schooling because of the idea that it increase academic achievement, but I think year round schooling doesn't work for our country and its culture. Each type of schooling has its advantages and disadvantages. But first we need to determine what is the difference between a year round school system and a traditional school system, and why do we have them?

Year-round schooling is an educational institution which does not take a traditional summer vacation. The actual school days will still be the same as a traditional school which is 180 days, but the school days schedule will be different. A year round school schedule consists of 45 days of classes, Monday through Friday, and 15 off days, Monday through Friday. The schedule is a multi-track schedule. For example Student A can go to school for 45 days and breaks for 15 days. While Student A is off at home, Student B will be at school. So basically it is several groups of students rotating. The reason for year round schooling is to increase academic achievement.

Traditional schooling is an educational institution which consists of a summer break during the summer months. According to the PBS news hour, the schedule was designed when many Americans lived on a farm. At the time, school calendars revolved around the harvesting and planting of crops so that children could be home to help during the busiest summer months. Schools continued to stay with the schedule after farming declined, in part because it was difficult to hold classes during the hot summer months without air conditioning.

One advantage for year round schooling is that students and teachers are more refreshed by more frequent breaks. This will prevent student and teacher from getting get burnt-out as easily. Another advantage is that teacher will not spend too much time reviewing in the fall, after many students have forgotten what they learned over the summer break. It is also said that since there is not a summer break, there will be fewer juveniles. Advocates say a year round system improves academic performance. This is because they point to Japan, where student scores are higher than those in the U.S. With several groups of students rotating with the multi-track schedule, year round schooling is supposed to reduce overcrowding of schools and it gives teachers the opportunity to share classrooms.

There are several disadvantages to year round schooling. To start, a family with kids in different schools operating on different tracks could have a tough time scheduling day care or family vacations. There will be an end to summer camps and no more summer jobs. Year round schools that have sports would make it very hard for everyone to coordinate practice times after