Goodbye Summer, Hello School

Race To The Top. This competitive, focused initiative to improve America's education is surrounded by controversy. And Obama isn't stopping yet. He has proposed to extend school days and school years. This means more hours in a classroom everyday and less outside by the pool in the summer. MSNBC News reports that the Obama Administration believes this extension, although pricey, would improve test scores. Research shows that adding math instruction minutes to the day significantly rose scores. And, a shorter summer means less time for kids to forget everything they learned over the school year, a common problem. The KIPP charter schools go to 7:30pm to 5:00 p.m; and all the schools exceed their school district averages on state tests.

However, this "progress" is subjective. Improving test scores is no indication of improving a child's education, it is yet another form of competition that fuels the idea of the "race to the top." I don't believe this initiative is a good idea, and not just because I'm a student. If we have a poor education system in the first place, extending the time that children can receive this education will not accomplish anything. We need to completely rewrite the system as we know it. We can't view education as a means to improve test scores. We want our children to learn to think, analyze, and question everything they come across.

These are all political advisors and administrators making these decisions. But it is us, the students, who is affected by all this. We are the one's living and breathing the American education system.

So, what do think? Do you think extending school days and the school year will improve education in America? Would your views change if you lived in a different part of the country? How can America improve education?