MuskogeePhoenix.com, Muskogee, OK

Editorials

Discussion

September 29, 2009

Shorter week could lead to weaker education

Before changing to a four-day school week, districts should do all they can to reduce budgets to retain five-day school weeks.

Two school districts in Oklahoma — Gore and Prue — have gone to four-day school weeks and longer school days to reduce expenses and deal with declining school budgets. With state revenues down in August, schools learned this month of cuts in education funding of almost 3 percent. State officials warned the financial crisis could worsen with even deeper cuts later in the school year.

A four-day week saves money in transportation and energy bills, but of course, the shorter week poses problems for parents who need to find care for the weekday their children have off.

Parents in Gore complained that the switch to the shorter week came without sufficient notice, but change always causes complaints. The fact is the state made the option possible when the Legislature and governor approved a bill allowing the school year requirement to amount to 1,050 hours of instruction along with the older standard, 175 days.

The most valid complaint, though, apparently is that a longer school day may be too much for young children’s attention spans or more time each day will be spent trying to keep children on task. The longer day may not offer as much quality education time.

If that’s the case — and districts and the state should try to assess that possibility — then the change isn’t worth the cost in savings.

We still believe the state should do more to consolidate Oklahoma’s school districts and reduce administrative costs. Many states are debating that issue, but the fact is, all states have reduced the number of districts throughout their histories.

Better to save money in administrative costs than eliminate educational programs.

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