In the spirit of my responses that I submitted for my Discussion questions I found an article President Obama’s proposal for more time in school for our children. He discussed the length of our academic calendar of 180 days versus the 200+ days of many other countries. What I found interesting is the number of responses from school-aged children. Most of them are against more time and advocate better teachers rather than time.
What kid wants to spend more time in school rather than be home with friends and family? My opinion on the matter is that if we create the right environment for portions of the student population and motivate them to be involved then their opinion would change. People need to see value in things to embrace them even if they are not the biggest fan of it.
Using the concept of 12 hour learning day in a blended learning environment can generate great results. It is not necessary for every student to stay the whole 12 hours. Why can’t they attend based on the needs of their personal education and their family’s circumstances? Why should they ride a bus for an hour, be home before their parents, and be unsupervised when they can stay at the school and utilize the learning day and be free of obligations when they go home?
As I mentioned in my DQ’s this is not a program to save low level learners. However, there are many kids in urban schools that live in similar environments as the low level learners. They can use this positive, safe, and productive environment to excel instead of be subjected to the negative influences of their home environments.
The article is:
http://www.eduinreview.com/blog/2009/03/obama-proposes-longer-school-days-extended-school-year/
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