More school: Obama would curtail summer vacation, page 1

More school: Obama would curtail summer vacation

news.yahoo.com

WASHINGTON – Students beware: The summer vacation you just enjoyed could be sharply curtailed if President Barack Obama gets his way.

Obama says American kids spend too little time in school, putting them at a disadvantage with other students around the globe.

"Now, I know longer school days and school years are not wildly popular ideas," the president said earlier this year. "Not with Malia and Sasha, not in my family, and probably not in yours. But the challenges of a new century demand more time in the classroom."

(visit the link for the full news article)

Wow, I dont know what to think. On one hand everyone says our citizens dont get the education that people in other countries do. They like to look at Japan and say we dont go to school as much as they do. But who wants to be in school all the time, doesnt Japan have one of the most stressful cultures and high suicide rate?

I also found this quote disturbing.
"The president, who has a sixth-grader and a third-grader, wants schools to add time to classes, to stay open late and to let kids in on weekends so they have a safe place to go."

Well now were turning into mommy and daddy to protect the kids. I dont think that is what school should be for.



news.yahoo.com
(visit the link for the full news article)

reply to post by crw2006

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On the one hand, I agree with Obama. (that actually IS one of the signs of the apocalyspe) We need to refocus on education. More school would be a good thing.

On the other hand. . . . who would pay for it? Higher taxes? What other classroom agendas would there be? Would partisan politics be part of this brave new classroom?

reply to post by SonicInfinity

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Half of my teachers said that is why they took teaching up. To spend summer with their kids.

Education needs to change. It needs to become more strict. Part of the major problem is that it is too relaxed, doesn't push kids to really succeed.

All my teachers always told me "Oh you're such a smart kid" but never actually put that to the test.

reply to post by Solarskye

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You may have the right idea. The govt. should give a huge tax break if you put your kid in private school.

One governor wanted to do this for his state, but the teachers unions fought it to the bitter end.

Teachers unions need to go.

My take on this:

Kids in the U.S. spend more hours in school (1,146 instructional hours per year) than do kids in the Asian countries that persistently outscore the U.S. on math and science tests — Singapore (903), Taiwan (1,050), Japan (1,005) and Hong Kong (1,013). That is despite the fact that Taiwan, Japan and Hong Kong have longer school years (190 to 201 days) than does the U.S. (180 days).
___

Link to article

Also, the longer school day and the lessening of the summer vacation concerns me. When will children have time to play, time to be kids? So...from like age six or seven onward up until age 17 or 18, kids will have very, very little time for leisure activities and just being kids, and then they will be forced into a job or college? To me, this sounds like a recipe for high stress and rebellion. It also sounds a bit like child labor. And additionally, the more time at school, the less time with parents...true, some parents aren't there for their kids, but what about the parents who do want to be there?

I don't think this is about increasing our competitive edge with the world. I think it's about more government control.

Parents who can, I would recommend home schooling if this takes place.

One more thing, the Asian countries doing so well on test scores may be due to their diet. A diet based more on grains, vegetables, and fruits, more low-fat, less dairy, less meat, can enhance mental abilities...I've experienced it myself since becoming vegetarian (I'm a math major now in college, but in grammar and high school, when I ate the typical American diet, math was more difficult...)

Originally posted by lucentenigma
Summer vacation is a tradition.

Its more than that, its an industry. Entire local economies will collapse without vacation travel. Entire communities will be abandoned that are summer second home communities.

I think we voted for Cosby and got Steve Urkel instead.

[edit on 27-9-2009 by Chakotay]

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