Snow 2014
Suffice it to say that “snow days” are a rarity here in the South. We just don’t have them that often and weather can cause havoc with our already tight schedules. Gwinnett County Public Schools is full of pride for their vision of having world-class schools. What they are also gaining a reputation for is not listening to the parents of the students who attend their world-class schools. The plan put forth, increasing the school day by 30 minutes, by the superintendent in response to having missed a certain number of instructional days has social media buzzing like a swarm of angry hornets…
The old adage, loosely interpreted, that you can’t please all of the people all of the time is probably more than apt for the situation. That being said, GCPS tends to do “what is best for everyone” under the auspices of statements by Superintendent Alvin Wilbanks such as: “The proposed plan is a logical, responsible one that we feel will best serve our students, teachers, and staff.” The chatter on social media indicates that the interpretation by many parents is that the superintendent’s office tends to do what they want in the name of what is best for the reputation of the school system, not necessarily individual students.
Summary of the commentary includes:
Not happy about this as an option, honestly I’d rather them add make up days rather then stealing minutes from an already busy schedule.
Wow, this is going to make after school activities more crazy than they already were!
Means my kiddo won’t be home until 5:40 .
MS can not possibly be extended any later. Only option that may work for MS would be to start earlier.
What about babysitters and day care? The cost of an extended day for those who depend on that care?
What about teachers who have to pay for extra childcare?
How many hours will middle school students go without a meal? They can try to have a snack, but generally that eats up 15 minutes of time anyway.
Tutoring, therapy, guidance sessions will be interrupted.
Even though I am a freelancer, which does afford me the ability to work “around” my kids to the best of my ability, I cannot imagine how the GCPS extended school day will work for my own two boys. Middle school kids have other lessons, tutoring, medical appointments, etc… that will have to be accommodated. High school kids have jobs and college courses. Elementary School kids will be bat-crazy!
My background as a behavioral education teacher places one thought at the top of the list. I think it will erode the integrity of an already well-balanced/tightly balanced day by creating a sense of unhealthy daily anticipation. These kids are already pre-programmed to the current level of expectations and this will create some chaos…with a backlash that will likely further create a sense that the school board is not listening to the parents. The parents are those charged with the care of their children and who have carefully designed a schedule that includes a well-rounded life experience. And for many parents life includes a hang on by the skin-of-your teeth daily calendar that does not have even the minutest amount of time for variety. Thirty minutes is an indulgence, not logical or responsible.
FreelanceBeth 