Obama's School Year Expansion

When President Obama announced his plan to expand the number of hours students spend in school, he was met with mixed reactions. "I know longer school days and school years are not wildly popular ideas," the president admitted. "But the challenges of a new century demand more time in the classroom."

Secretary of Education Arne Duncan fully supports the idea. "Young people in other countries are going to school 25, 30 percent longer than our students here," Arne told the Associated Press. "I just want to level the playing field."

Currently summer break can last anywhere from eight to twelve weeks. Children who make significant improvements in achievement during the school year often find themselves underachieving after a summer of TV and video games. Others may spend the summer lonely, hungry, and especially bored -- none of which foster a safe environment for learning.

Despite arguments against a schooling expansion, scores of schools across the country have already adopted a longer school day or year. Children who attend KIPP schools typically begin at 7:30 a.m. and stay until 5 p.m. -- with huge success. According to this article, Tom Loveless of the Brookings Institution found that countries that added just minutes to each school day found significant improvement in math scores.

Centuries ago, one of America's first education reformers felt the system was "in a state of disrepair." Horace Mann (1796-1859) fought to add six months more schooling in places where students only attended a few weeks during the winter. Over time, rural areas continued to increase the number of school days, while urban areas cut away, leaving us with the 180 day school year most U.S. students observe today.

So where do you stand in the debate? Will extra school days lead to higher test scores and more educated students or overwhelmed teachers and stressed families? Somewhere in between?