Do We Really Need Two Months Off?
Do We Really Need Two Months Off? The last few weeks of school are often unproductive for most classrooms, which has led many school to research if summer break is the best option. In The History of School and Summer Vacation , James Pedersen discusses the contrast between U.S. schools and other higher achieving schools internationally; one noted difference is the length of the school year as many international schools have school year round ( Journal of Inquiry and Action in Education ). Pedersen explains that historically many schools throughout the United States have adjusted the typical 9- or 10-month school year and experimented with year-round school to increase student achievement and reduce summer learning loss. Throughout these studies there has been some evidence of year-round schools being beneficial for elementary and middle school students, but no significant improvement was seen at the high school level. So with that research, wouldn't educators want to signific...
