Gannett News Service
WASHINGTON - Demands for more tests and more academic rigor are spurring schools to consider something that makes most students shudder: more time in class.
Massachusetts is paying for longer days at 10 schools this year. Minnesota is considering whether to add five weeks to the school calendar. A smattering of schools around the country, including schools in Iowa, North Carolina and California, already have increased the time some students spend in class.
The argument that students should spend more time in school isn't new.
"A Nation at Risk," the landmark 1983 report dissecting America's education challenges, recommended that schools run seven hours (up from around six today) and 200 to 220 days (up from a current average of 180) to accommodate more rigorous instruction. Highly touted KIPP charter schools, started in 1994, rely on longer days and Saturday school to teach students.
But the argument is gaining support as increased math and English testing required by the federal No Child Left Behind law have forced schools to focus on the basics at the expense of the arts, physical education and recess.
"The things that excited students about school were essentially stripped to their bare bones," said Nancy Mullen, principal of Kuss Middle School in Fall River, Mass. "How does an art teacher teach art when she's teaching once a week?"
Kuss is adding eight hours over each week. That extra time is being used not only to provide direct instruction but also to give students a chance to pursue more entertaining interests, such as cooking, theater and karate, where academic concepts can be woven in.
Only schools that volunteered were eligible to participate in Massachusetts' expanded-school program. The program largely targets schools that have struggled and might need more time to improve.
In Minnesota, school superintendents want to make more class time mandatory. They've proposed gradually extending the current school year in the state (174 days on average) by 25 more days, bringing it more in line with many European and Asian nations.
"We're looking around the world and saying: 'Holy Smokes!' There's other societies that are much more dedicated to creating knowledgeable workers of the future," said Charlie Kyte, director of the Minnesota Association of School Administrators.
It might make academic sense, but convincing parents and students to reshuffle their lives won't be easy.
Dylan Kennedy, 18, of St. Paul, Minn., questions whether students, particularly high school seniors who have been accepted to college, will have the stamina or interest to go an extra month. Besides, he said, students need summer to work, go to camp, and bond with their families.
"School is very important, but there's a lot more to learning than just calculus," said Kennedy, who sat on an advisory committee that discussed the issue with state lawmakers last year. "The summer activities that many students engage in are very valuable."
Not all kids are giving a thumbs-down to more time in school.
Amid the extra math and reading lessons at Kuss Middle, eighth-grader Kaylee Penland finds time to participate in theater and pursue her interest in ham radio.
"I like the extended part of the day a lot more than just being in school for regular learning," she said. "It feels like it's going by fast. It doesn't feel like we're in school for that long."
BREAKOUT
Increased costs ended Florida experiment
Extending the school day or year costs millions and not many states have the resources to fund it. Lack of money was largely the reason Florida abandoned its experiment with a longer school year several years ago, despite parental support, according to one principal. More than a dozen schools got state money to extend the school year from 180 to 210 days for three straight years. Students at South Sumter Middle School west of Orlando weren't required to attend the extra 30 days, but about half did because they liked what was offered, former principal Preston Morgan said.
"We did field trips. We did lab workshops. We did plays," he said. "We did all kinds of things that you don't have time to do during the regular school year."
Morgan can't prove the extra time in school led to increased achievement, though participation in science fairs shot up.
Advocates of extra time concede it's hard to judge whether extra time leads to higher test scores. What's crucial, they say, is making sure that time is used constructively to meet the goals of No Child Left Behind.
"There is no way we're going to meet that goal unless we do some radical things like adding time," said Jennifer Davis, president of Massachusetts 2020, the non-profit group that has pushed for more time in school. "This is a very deep societal change we're talking about, even though it makes a heck of a lot of sense. It's not easy and it's not simple."
Contact Ledyard King at lking(AT)gns.gannett.com
On the Web:
www.ed.gov/pubs/NatAtRisk, link to "A Nation at Risk" report
www.mass2020.org, Massachusetts 2020
www.mnasa.org, Minnesota Association of School Administrators
