Guest Editorial: Extended day, year-round school - WSFA.com: News Weather and Sports for Montgomery, AL.

Guest Editorial: Extended day, year-round school

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  • Editorials

  • Thursday, May 16 2013 7:20 PM EDT2013-05-16 23:20:04 GMT
    In my editorial on Tuesday I chided our legislators for being the last state to pass a no-brainer  bill legalizing home brewing.  Today I want to challenge them to be one of the first states to pass another no-brainer;
    In my editorial on Tuesday I chided our legislators for being the last state to pass a no-brainer  bill legalizing home brewing.  Today I want to challenge them to be one of the first states to pass another no-brainer;

  • Tuesday, May 14 2013 7:20 PM EDT2013-05-14 23:20:07 GMT
    Kudos, or perhaps, cheers to the Alabama Legislature for passing HB9, the home brewing bill. Legalized home brewing may not be up there with education reform or prison funding, but it was overdue. 
    Kudos, or perhaps, cheers to the Alabama Legislature for passing HB9, the home brewing bill. Legalized home brewing may not be up there with education reform or prison funding, but it was overdue. 

  • Thursday, May 9 2013 7:20 PM EDT2013-05-09 23:20:06 GMT
    What was the old Pan-Am gas station at the corner of Bibb and Coosa is now no longer.  Last weekend that landmark was demolished with nothing remaining where it once stood other than the outline of a foundation. What
    What was the old Pan-Am gas station at the corner of Bibb and Coosa is now no longer.  Last weekend that landmark was demolished with nothing remaining where it once stood other than the outline of a foundation. What
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If you had to create a school program from the ground up that best served the students and families in Alabama today, what would it be?

For one thing you would want school to be a fairly continuous process, so students would retain what they learn from week to week, month to month, year to year .

Yet to allow struggling students to get remedial help before lagging too far behind their peers we would need  three or four short breaks throughout the year.  Those short breaks could also allow students who excel to take enrichment classes that couldn't be taught during the regular sessions.   This could give those students an extra year of education by the fifth grade.

We might want to stagger the school sessions, which would make more efficient use of your facilities and staff … no point in wasting our tax dollars.

And  the school day should  coincide with the parents' work day, since so many moms and dads work outside the home.  Parents wouldn't have to pay someone to watch their kids during the day.   No unattended children at home.   Less stress on the parents.

Of course, what we're talking about is year round , extended day school.  

More than 2 million students in close to 3,000 public schools in 41 states and 610 school districts attended year round schools last year..

Students in countries that routinely outscore the United States on international tests, spend more time in school, often  as many as 50 days per year more than in Alabama.

 In order to keep our children competitive in the world, we may have to give up a system designed for an agrarian America, in favor of one better suited for America and the world today.