Should students attend school year-round?

Round 1

Shan Amarnani – The educational system has been in the spotlight this past elec­tion period for good reason. The quality of primary and second­ary education has been deteriorating for quite some time. Why does our educational system lag behind other developed nations? One reason could be the long summer breaks. Long breaks make a student lazy and unwilling to get back to the routine of studying. Of course, breaks are necessary; however, many believe that four months is too much vacation time for kids. A more effective meth­od for learning would be to make the learning process continuous and fun with small breaks in between. Many schools implement­ing year-round schooling have seen many benefits. One main ben­efit is the prevention of “learning loss” during the long summer breaks. This is just one of the many reasons year-round schooling should be implemented nationwide.

Samm Stein – While it is true that our school systems are lagging behind, I don’t think the breaks are to blame. Breaks are necessary to allow students, especially those that are of elementary age, to grow other skills that can’t be taught in school. For example, while most children aren’t learning math or science, they are often learning social skills by freely playing with friends or learning about the world through summer vacation travel. If learning loss is a concern, then perhaps instead of forcing a child to sit in a prison-like environment reciting the alphabet and doing math, we should look at how parents can help their students, again especially the young ones, to learn things over break. There are plenty of apps now for tablets and phones that parents can download that will help reiterate the things stu­dents may forget over breaks.

Round 2

Stein – One group of people we can’t forget here is the teachers. Teachers work incredibly hard throughout the school year to teach students and help them grow. They deserve a couple months off to rest. Summer break is advantageous to them as well. Often, employees express feeling burnt out when they work a lot. Vacations boost productivity and motivation. Va­cations also help spark creativity. Teachers need the break to refresh their minds as well. Summer break is also a key time for teachers to gather materials, reflect on the past year and get new ideas for the upcoming school year. Of course, having a refreshed teacher with plenty of motivation and ideas for the school year can help students also be more motivated to learn. If the teacher is burnt out from teaching year-round, the chil­dren will still suffer from poor education quality.

Amarnani – More often than not, kids just sit around at home watch­ing TV or playing video games. I mentioned before that breaks are necessary and this is true. Kids should still get breaks; however, they should not be as long as they are now. With the extended school time in the summer, lessons don’t have to be taught as quickly. Kids can learn the material at a much slower pace. This would allow them to truly learn and understand the material. Since the pace of learning would be significantly decreased, kids would have time to play in school and even go on trips and enjoy the outdoors. School does not have to be boring and monotonous. If we have the right curriculum, learning can be fun for everyone.

Round 3

Amarnani – Everyone needs a break. However, there’s a limit. If teachers re­ally enjoyed teaching then being “burnt out” shouldn’t be a prob­lem because they’re doing what they love. The lower middle-class families are already at a disadvantage in today’s economy. Having longer breaks would put even more stress on working parents because they would have to pay for additional activities for their children to do in the summer such as summer camp or violin les­sons. The problem is that these families usually cannot afford these. This puts the child at a disadvantage over their richer peers. A one-month vacation is enough to clear someone’s mind and to have a decent vacation. The additional three months is simply un­necessary. The advantages of year-round schooling far outweigh the disadvantages. There simply isn’t an argument strong enough to discourage year-round schooling.

Stein – Even if teachers adore their jobs, it’s very possible to still get burnt out just from the stress of everyday life. No one can work, even in a profession they love, without having a few extremely stressful days. Since kids do tend to spend more and more of their time looking at screens, low-income parents that are wor­ried about finding affordable activities can simply turn to iTunes or Google Play and find numerous free apps that are meant to help teach children everything from the alphabet to math. There are also numerous educational shows available online or on Net­flix that parents can watch with their children or have a babysit­ter watch with them. If there is a desire to put a child in violin les­sons or summer camp, there are often financial support or even free options still available. I will admit four months seems exces­sive, but I think going to school 11 of 12 months is still too much.