Increasing the length of the school day for children and teenagers in grades K-12 has been proposed by government agencies and private educators alike. Even though additional classroom time means more time for learning, disadvantages for students, teachers and tax payers also exist. Perhaps surprisingly, research indicates that a longer school day doesn't necessarily result in better academic performances or higher achievement rates.
Attention Deficit and Fatigue
Longer school days could result in attention deficit and fatigue, making the extra class time ineffective. When students are too tired or mentally exhausted to concentrate, the last hour of the day becomes useless. Some students, even as old as eighth-graders, suffer from post-lunch attention deficit syndrome and aren't mentally prepared to take on an additional hour of classwork, reports eighth-grade teacher Ron Whitehome on Philadelphia's education website TheNotebook.org. Young students might feel fatigue or fall asleep during class time if they are too tired to concentrate or perform.
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No Improved Scores
Reports show that more time spent in school doesn't necessarily result in higher test scores. Children and teenagers in the United States spend more hours in school than kids in Asian countries, according to data compiled in 2009. U.S. children spent an average of 1,146 instructional hours per year in school, students in Taiwan, Hong Kong, Japan and Singapore spent 1,050, 1,013, 1,005 and 903 hours respectively, according to FoxNews.com. However, students in Asian countries consistently outperform U.S. students on math and science tests.
Teachers
Extended school days means that teachers will be required to work longer hours or additional teachers must be hired to work the extra time. Teachers unions have expressed that they don't want to work longer hours, and trying to persuade them otherwise could be a challenge, says award-winning teacher Melissa Taylor in "Parenting" magazine. Teachers already arrive early to prepare for class, stay late to record grades, spend extra time preparing lessons and attend after-hours teacher meetings and parent-teacher conferences.
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Funding
Adding extra time to the school day requires more funding to cover higher teacher salaries, supplemental textbooks or resources and the cost of additional specialized educators. Citizens will have to pay higher property taxes to cover the increased costs at public schools. Private schools will be forced to raise tuition. "It's important not to confuse quantity with quality," Taylor said. She recommends improving the quality of education for all students from all economic backgrounds, rather than lengthening the school day.
