May 23, 2012
KNOXVILLE, Tenn. (WVLT) -- President Barack Obama is calling for a longer school day or school year. He says he knows it may not be a popular idea, but making American children globally competitive means more schooling is needed.
While most everyone can agree our system could use some tweaks, but not all in Knoxville see spending summers in the classroom as a solution.
"For young kids, it's important that they can be kids, because it doesn't last very long," says Amy Olson.
Olson is part of a grassroots effort called Save Tennessee's Summers, aimed at maintaining our current school calendar.
"We found that it was cutting into the summer when parents implement education that doesn't happen within the four walls of the classroom," says Olson.
For other parents, "A shorter summer break, or longer school days, I would be supportive of that," says Ju Guan.
A year-round calendar could produce smarter kids, capable of competing on a global level.
Guan says, "I'm from China. I remember, we had one and a half months of summer break. But here it's only the summer is two and a half months toward three months depending on the location. It's a little bit long."
With more time, Guan says, "They can stretch out the curriculum, they can get in more, get more into it."
The Knox County School Board says they haven't considered year round school yet, but that doesn't mean it isn't in the future.
"We may have to as a country, not just Knox County, rethink how long we need our kids to be in school," says Chair Indya Kincannon. "It's not about getting rid of summers, it's just about adjusting how we allocate our resources to educate our kids."
Educators agree there are benefits.
"The students don't have that long gap as they do with the traditional calendar so that they are able to retain their learning from year to year," says Jessica Holman, president of the Knox County Education Association.
But it may not work everywhere or for each student. Education may even work best as an individualized program.
"Let teachers teach and let students learn and not put so many demands on them to perform to a certain standard when it really needs to be individualized," says Olson.
Calendar or not, changes could be coming. "How we can bring those kids up to level," says Holman. "It will most likely involve a paradigm shift in how the schools are run."
Some parents say year round school would be a convenience for childcare. But compensating teachers for additional hours in the classroom could be costly for school districts already facing budget problems.
President Obama has also suggested schools should stay open later and let kids in on the weekends, to offer a safe place for learning.
