Proposal to Lengthen the School Year

Re “Lawmaker Seeks to Add 7 Days to School Year,” Nov. 25:

Proponents of lengthening class periods or adding days to the school year miss the mark. The answer to successful teaching and learning is quite simple: Quality instruction from the teacher and student accountability as to proper use of time outside the classroom.

In my 33 years of teaching experience, I have found that most students have a limited attention span and are only able to absorb so much material in so much time. Using the attention span to the fullest is the key. During this period a lesson must be skillfully presented, dissected, discussed, questioned and analyzed. It is the student who is accountable for the time he/she spends at home or in the study hall to digest and assimilate the materials from the classes. More emphasis should be placed on homework as an extension of the lesson.

I also know from experience that too many students are involved with part-time jobs and other activities that take priority over school work. Extending the school year or increasing class times does not address this problem.

NORMAN A. NERO

Granada Hills

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How ludicrous that state Sen. Jim Brulte (R-Rancho Cucamonga) wants to add seven days to the school year at a cost of $350 million when he could recover seven days of instruction without spending a cent. How?

Try eliminating teacher workshops during class time. Try returning schools to the education institutions they were meant to be instead of mental health clinics where kids are pulled out of class for therapy. Try telling the Ms. Foundation that schools won’t support its “Take Our Daughters to Work Day” if it means taking students out of school. Try rescheduling pizza parties, ice cream socials, incentive days, etc. away from the classroom and into the after-school hours.

It’s poor planning and a skewed sense of priorities that are contributing to our ever-shrinking school day.

JILL CHAPIN

Santa Monica

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While schoolchildren clearly benefit from more quality instructional time, rarely do such discussions examine the length of the school day in America. In comparing the U.S. to other nations, according to the National Center for Education Statistics, U.S. schools have a lower number of instructional days, but a relatively higher number of hours devoted to learning per day.

ALAN TRUDELL

Anaheim Hills