We recently discussed in class about the length of school days. I recollected from my trip to Germany about how days would start around seven and end around noon. Many students in our American Studies class said that they would much rather have shorter days. Others said that a long day would be more effective. I also remember hearing someone say that most people would want a shorter week or year, but I think that this is not the case. In Hawaii last year, in order to cut down on cost, students were granted a three day weekend. While the children loved having more free time, parents were furious. How did this happen? Why would the government allow these children to miss valuable days of school? The law was in effect for less than a year because of all of the anger it generated from the public. Is the government to blame for causing these children to have a shorter week, and was there anything they could have done to change it? This law was recently overturned and now Fridays are included into the regular week. For more on the story, visit the link below. Quoted from one of my favorite movies, Lilo and Stitch: "Ohana means family, and family means nobody left behind"http://www.hawaiinewsnow.com/global/story.asp?s=12238965
I like the detailed example of how communities react to changes in the length of school days, Henry. I think one of the main reasons the parents were upset about this change is that the parents would have to take care of younger kids on a day they would normally be working or doing other things. For parents of kids our age this would not be a problem, but younger students around 1-3rd grade would need a parent home on Fridays, which is a work day for most adults.
ReplyDeleteI think the parents' reaction is an example of the hyper-competitive, get there as fast as possible mentality that we discussed in class. The parents' argument is that cutting Fridays will put their kids at a disadvantage. This desire for success at any cost permeates American society.
ReplyDeleteHenry,
ReplyDeleteI certainly like the design of your blogs and posts, but I am a bit confused as to the purpose of the title.
I also think you glossed over some important details from the news article you cited: this is about state budgets, money and labor disputes more than anything else. I think it's quite significant that "teachers will give up seven of their non-instructional work days."
A bigger question to pose might be: to what degree is public schooling a sort of glorified childcare system, even for high school students?