The RISD is seeking community input to finalize the school calendar for next year, after three years of using a system which all agree is imperfect – semester exams are given after the Christmas holidays.
To recap, as the state adds to the required number of instructional days and the mommy contingent (and the leisure lobby) fights to keep summer from ending too soon in August, districts have grappled with a math word problem: If schools must administer 176 instructional days but they may not begin before late August, should they have exams halfway through the year (in January after winter break) or schedule them for the week before the holidays and create lopsided semesters?
I’ve already expressed my opinion here on the blog. Kids need the holidays to rest, rejuvenate, and experience life. Lots of LH kids go on mission trips, join youth ministry ski trips, catch up on reading for pleasure, visit Grandma, or travel with their families. These activities are valuable – to their education, to their life, and to their happiness. However, in today’s competitive world of applying to college and seeking scholarship dollars, taking two weeks off just before finals is just too risky – many will forgo the fun to hole up in their room with their textbooks.
On the other hand, exams before Christmas means semesters are divided unevenly. If you take Economics first semester and I take it in the second, you had 79 days of instruction to my 97. Also unfair, since we may be competing for that lost spot in the top ten percent.
Of course, we’re not the only district to grapple with the question. Highland Park and Plano give exams before Christmas, while McKinney and Coppell hold them afterward. RISD has been studying these and other districts in an effort to find the best fit for us. There’s a way to craft a school year that helps our students stay competitive, while fostering a well-balanced life of varied enrichment experiences, and now it’s time for RISD trustees to find it. Deputy Superintendent Patti Kieker looks forward to hearing your vote. After studying Option 1 here and Option 2 here, you may email her here to give your opinion.
