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 4 school days a week? Some say no way
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Greenman Elementary School fifth-grader Melanie Garcia would just say no to a three-day weekend.
Any school district that converts to the new four-day school plan the Illinois House is supporting would have to keep the number of instructional hours it offers the same as at present. And 11-year-old Melanie fears this would mean longer class days.
"By the time they'd finish and I did the after-school things, I would be getting home at 5, 6 at night," said the West Aurora girl, who is involved in drama, Illinois Math and Science Academy classes and sports after school and in choir before school.
Although neither the West Aurora nor East Aurora district is considering moving to a four-day school week, they could if the state Senate also agrees to the bill that the House passed this week. Designed to allow the downstate Jamaica School District to cut the cost of busing students by one day a week, the bill passed the House 81-21.
"You're not going to be talking about a city of Chicago doing this kind of thing," said Yorkville Republican Rep. Kay Hatcher, who voted for the bill. "But with rural districts, especially (ones) that have huge transportation issues, busing children many, many miles can create significant costs."
And, of course, just because districts could be able to do this doesn't mean they have to.
"We've legislated that we can have all-year schools, too, but not many districts do that," said Aurora Democrat Rep. Linda Chapa LaVia, who also voted for the four-day school week.
House Minority Leader Tom Cross, R-Oswego, voted for it as well, as did Rep. Darlene Senger, a Naperville Republican.
Garcia's father Jose, 42, said he would be concerned about how a three-day gap could affect students' education.
"Who's to say that, by Monday, what they learned on Thursday is remembered?" he said.
Another concern is what to do with children on a new weekend day.
"A lot of parents depend on school to provide an education five days a week while the parent works," said Greenman parent Amie Dill, 30, of Aurora. "For most single parents, we can't afford to put our kids in day care every week."
Neither Aurora district has considered the measure, spokesmen for the districts said.
"I don't know if the School Board would consider it, given issues with the quality of education," West Aurora School District spokesman Mike Chapin said. "In a working-class community you have really, really significant child care issues."
The bill is in reaction to the school funding crisis, in which the state is behind $1.3 billion in payments to local districts. The budget Gov. Pat Quinn has proposed would slash an additional $1 billion from the schools next year.
Chris Neidigh is principal of Somonauk High School, a rural district similar to the ones the bill was designed to aid. The funding crisis recently caused the Somonauk district to cut art programs along with choir, half the agriculture program and several teachers.
"I guess it's another option, something for schools to consider," Neidigh said of the four-day week.
"We're looking at everything and anything at this point to save money."
Source: Chicago Suntimes
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