It’s an interesting enough question – don’t you think? I know the kids love having three months off in the summer to vacation and enjoy the beautiful weather (and I don’t think the teachers mind too much, either!), but maybe it’s time for a change.
The actual purpose for “summer vacation” stems back to times when children were needed to help tend the farm and get everything ready for the fall harvest. Back then, they may have preferred to stay in school! It’s funny to me how much has changed over the centuries and yet the school’s calendar year has not budged. There is such an emphasis on education and “competing” with other countries one would think that adjusting the school year would be a simple and relatively easy fix. Perhaps modeling an educational system after those found in other countries would help our country gain a competitive edge.
Beyond high school, we’re seeing more and more of the accelerated programs where there are a couple weeks off between semesters – mostly in online colleges and universities. And we’re starting to see online high schools pop up more and more, giving the student the ability to work at their own personal level and at their own pace.
What are your thoughts? Do you think the traditional September-June school year should be rethought?