Saturday, February 4, 2012

Get 'em CPS..

Debate has been raging in Chicago Public Schools (CPS) between parents, teachers and the school organization on length of school days. CPS argues that their school district lags behind nationally in their instructional time and given consistent poor performances by students is adding to the list of reasons why this is a good idea. So what is the debate about?

Parents, teachers and students each have their own set of concerns about this. Parents complain that their kids are too tired, along with students who say that they are 'swamped' and 'tired' already with the amount of work they currently have. Teachers are puzzled on how to accommodate another 40 minutes of lesson planning.

But the issue is a lot bigger than what appears. It is ridiculous for parents or students to complain about the amount of work in any American high school, let alone ones in an under-performing school district. Granted that quality and not quantity of education is what we should be concerned about, but this is an effort to fix something that is broken by the school district and the gesture should be welcomed and supported.

An average high school student has plenty of options to engage in co and extra-curricular activities. Some of these activities are time consuming and tiring, leaving them little to no time for academics. Between athletics, music, drama, speech and other dozens of extra-curricular options available, a student can't be blamed for not wanting to do geometry practice. With both parents working, going home isn't necessarily a much better option - given socially polluting television shows that are often used as soothers. Aren't we better off having these kids be in school another hour every day either engaging in their activities of choice or spending more time on academics?

Whether or not to add the extra time to each day is a senseless debate. How to spend the extra 40 minutes is a legitimate one. Perhaps these schools need to take a look at their after-school offerings and incorporate them in the school day or use this time as extra prep time for college exams, advanced classes, or adding a basic course in Finance 101. I'm not talking about stock market analysis or financial portfolio management. How many 17 year olds know what it means to have a credit card, not pay your bill on time or at all, the consequences of accumulating a debt and paying higher interest rates in turn ruining your credit score? I think the safe assumption would be less than 20%. Why don't we invest in common sense courses so we can strive for smarter civilians?

I hope the city school district wins this one.

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