Balancing the School Calendar: A Timely Investment
School board members are elected to be good stewards
of the community, state, and federal dollars for education.
“Education reform has the greatest opportunity to make a difference and
become firmly established when education reform (multiple teaching and
learning innovations) and school reform (extensive system and structural
changes) are considered together to make decisions about financial resources
and need.” Ted Sizer, founder, Coalition of Essential Schools
The best return on investment is efficient, effective, equitable use of resources!
Phyllis (Bunker) Frank
National Association for Year Round Education
WA State Board of Education
frankpb@wolfenet.com
WSSDA Annual Conference 2013
Session Essential Question:
Does the traditional school calendar serve all students and
contribute to schools becoming high-achieving and equitable
places of learning that connect to their communities?
Session Outcomes:
1. Understand how a balanced/modernized district calendar schedule
supports continuous learning for students; perpetuates a
safe/supportive environment; strengthens professional
development alignment; increases job satisfaction for faculty;
provides consistent school/family/community partnership and full
year facility use.
2. Stimulate advocacy for local academic calendar year study as an
efficient, effective, and fair investment worthy of consideration.
Copyright, Martha Rice/Phyllis Frank, 2002
Discontinuous Schooling
Copyright, Martha Rice/Phyllis Frank, 2002
Continuous Learning
Calendar Year vs. Instructional Year
365 Days per year
- 120 (Saturdays, Sundays, state & federal holidays)
245 Days in which to schedule learning
United States
Singapore
South Korea
Japan
Canada
England
International Ave.
180 allocated instructional days (current 9 1/2 mo. configuration)
180
225
Do the math!
223
190
205 days (National 5 week summer break – 2003)
193 days
• Achievement gap data: In the current configuration, students in Quartile 1 &
2 need 20-40 more learning days to make significant assessed gains.
• Structuring learning throughout a 12-month calendar allows for
supplementary learning (enrichment, remediation, promotion, and
acceleration) to be prioritized and added where it may have the greatest
impact on learning.
Balanced
Learning
Calendar
2014-2015
For Maximum
Gain/Focus on Student
Achievement
Link
• Academic calendar (180 days)
• Supplementary opportunities to
learn (intersession, summer
school, before/after school, etc.)
Student Demographics - WA State
Enrollment
October 2012 Student Count
May 2013 Student Count
Gender (October 2012)
Male
Female
Race / Ethnicity (October 2012)
American Incian/Alaskan Native
Asian
Native Hawaiian / Other Pacific
Islander
Asian / Pacific Islander
Black / African American
Hispanic / Latino of any race(s)
White
Two or More Races
Special Programs
Free or Reduce-Price Meals (May
2013)
Special Education (May 2013)
Transitional Bilingual (May 2013)
Migrant (May 2013)
Section 504 (May 2013)
Foster Care (May 2013)
Other Information
Unexcused Absence Rate (2012-13)
Adjusted 4-Year Cohort Graduation Rate
(Class of 2012)
Adjusted 5-Year Cohort Graduation Rate
(Class of 2011)
1,050,900
1,047,390
542,237
508,663
51.6%
48.4%
16,366
75,130
1.6%
7.1%
9,665
84,795
48,325
214,144
620,570
66,653
0.9%
8.1%
4.6%
20.4%
59.1%
6.3%
482,634
136,099
94,176
18,318
23,889
1,684
46.1%
13.0%
9.0%
1.7%
2.3%
0.2%
529,358
0.5%
77.2%
78.9%
Washington State
Demographics
Financial Data (2011 - 12)
Per
Student Percent
Amounts
Total Revenue
$9,816 100.0%
State
$6,522 66.0%
Federal
$939 10.0%
Local
$2,267 23.0%
Other Sources
$88
1.0%
Total Expenditures
Central Administration
Building Administration
Maintenance &
Operations
Food Services
Transportation Services
Teaching
Other
$9,739 100.0%
$620
6.0%
$574
6.0%
$806
$320
$365
$6,781
$273
8.0%
3.0%
4.0%
70.0%
3.0%
This session contends that the K-12
traditional school calendar year is
siloed in the 19th century.
The traditional school calendar year
was never intended to be an
instructional calendar year.
We will view the rationale to
consider a shift to a 21st century
calendar infrastructure (bones of
academic opportunity to learn)
through the lens of:
• Summer learning loss research
• Policy and Procedure of school
calendar year development
• Sample calendars at work
• Elementary and Secondary
advantages
• Sample results
Why Time Matters:
Influences Out Of School
Since the Coleman report in 1966, educational researchers have consistently
shown that the socioeconomic factors of students at any given school
accounts for at least 66% of their overall academic achievement levels.
80%
child’s
waking
hours
Extracurricular
Family
Peer Group
Tutors/Mentors
Community
Time Analysis: District/School Level
•
Time inventory/analysis/ - within the day - whole group as blocked
scheduling and individual learning (RTI, “double dip”, and student
plans as 504 & IEP, looping)
•
Compulsory calendar time and learning analysis –when students
are required to attend, parents are required to send, and
districts/schools are required to be most prepared to receive ALL
students – FTE allocated funding/local levy (180 days in 30
states)
•
Supplementary (complementary) learning time analysis – varies
in time from year to year depending on funding; usually optional
attendance for students: summer school, before/after school,
Saturday school, Intersession opportunities – funded by Title $,
local levy, grants, federal programs as Century 21, limited state
funding, community based organization offerings
•
Professional development time – negotiated, waiver requests
•
Time and facilities use, service, and maintenance
Accountability and the School Calendar Year
“Accountability testing systems, which measure change from one
year to the next, mix learning that occurs in school with learning
that occurs during the summer. Thus, schools are held
accountable for not only the achievement of their students while
in school, but also for the achievement of their students that
accrues during the summer; over which they have no control.
If summer growth were the same for all students, summer could
be ignored when comparing the status and progress of students
by race/ethnicity and by income. However, there are large
differences in what happens to student achievement during
summer vacations, and changes in scores from year to year
cannot be attributed entirely to what happens during the school
year.”
Barton, Paul E. and Richard J Coley, “Parsing the Achievement Gap II,” Education
Testing Service April 2009, pp. 30-31.
The traditional calendar
features a long summer
vacation of 12 weeks
followed by a long
period of instruction
days, with the first
break coming at
Thanksgiving. The
winter holidays are
followed by 55
instruction days before
a short spring break.
Spring break is followed
by 40 work days before
the end of the school
year = 180 learning
days.
The first summer schools (1870) were called “vacation schools”
to assure that immigrant children would retain the English they
learned during schooling. The other intent was “to keep the
urchins, not in school and not working, off the street.”
Yakima Public Schools
2013-14 Instructional
Calendar
Summer Learning Loss (sll) – The decline in
procedural and factual knowledge all students
experience during the summer months when they
do not participate in constructive learning activities
to practice the skills they need to be successful in
school. The degree of summer learning loss varies
by grade level, subject and socioeconomic level.
Out of School Time (ost) – The awake hours not
obligated to formal academic learning (180) days
that is filled by family, neighborhoods, non-profit
and public institutions in communities across the
country. This time period is typically
characterized by discretionary opportunity,
choice, and flexibility.
School Year & Summer Gains for
Low and High SES in Reading
SCHOOL YEAR CUMULATIVE GAINS
SUMMER CUMULATIVE GAINS
40
190
190
90
30
140
140
90
90
40
40
70
20
50
10
30
0
-10
1
2
3
4
Disadvantaged, by Year
5
-10
1
1
2
3
4
Better-Off, by Year
5
2
3
4
5
-10
10
-20
-10
Disadvantaged, by Year
1
2
3
4
Better-Off, by Year
*Cumulative gains on California Achievement Test in reading over elementary school years and summers. Sample consists of Baltimore
Public school students who entered first grade in 1982. Test “scale scores” are California Achievement Test Scores calibrated to measure
Growth over a student’s 12-year school career.
Sources: Doris Entwisle, Karl Alexander, and Linda Olson, Children, Schools, and Inequality, Table 3.1
5
Learning Trajectory - Reading
Low-SES vs. High-SES Students
260
250
240
230
• School-year achievement gains were
comparable for upper SES and lower SES
children, but not for summer gains.
High SES Reading
Low SES Reading
220
210
• During the summer, upper SES children
continue to move ahead, but lower SES
children generally do not.
200
190
180
170
130
120
• By the end of 5th grade, the difference in
verbal achievement between poor and nonpoor students is more than two years; in
math, it is a year and a half.
110
100
• Vertical Axis = Gains on CAT-V & CAT M
160
150
140
90
• Horizontal Axis = Grade by .5 increments
80
70
60
50
40
30
Alexander, Karl L. and Entwisle, Doris R.; Summer Slide in the City
“A Case for Year Round Schooling.” (1998) Johns Hopkins University,
as published in the Title I Monitor, August 2000
20
10
0
1
1.5
2
2.5
3
3.5
4
4.5
5
Learning Trajectory - Math
Low-SES vs. High-SES Students
School-year achievement gains were
comparable for upper SES and lower
SES children, but not for summer gains.
260
250
240
230
220
210
200
190
180
170
160
150
140
130
120
110
100
90
80
70
60
50
40
30
20
10
0
• During the summer, upper SES children
continue to move ahead, but lower SES
children generally do not.
High SES Math
Low SES Math
• By the end of 5th grade, the difference
in verbal achievement between poor
and non-poor students is more than
two years; in math, it is a year and a
half.
• Vertical Axis = Gains on CAT-V & CAT M
• Horizontal Axis = Grade by .5
increments
1
1.5
2
2.5
3
3.5
4
4.5
5
Alexander, Karl L. and Entwisle, Doris R.; Summer Slide in the City
“A Case for Year Round Schooling.” (1998) Johns Hopkins University,
as published in the Title I Monitor, August 2000
S-U-M-M-E-R Spells Learning Loss for
Low-SES Students
“Differential summer learning over the primary grades
indeed appears to be the scaffolding that supports
disparities in school achievement across socioeconomic
lines. During the school year all the social contexts that
support children’s academic development contribute to
achievements gains – the home, the community and the
school. During the summer months, though, only the out-ofschool environment is implicated….it’s summer learning –
or its lack – that is responsible for the achievement gap…”
Anderson and Entwistle, Summer Slide in the City “A Case for Year Round Schooling”
(1998) Johns Hopkins University as published in Title I Monitor, August 2000.
Reading Comprehension Test Score Decomposition over the
First Nine Years of School by Family SES
Reading Comprehension
CAT Score Gains, Years 1 - 9
Total
Initial Test Score, Fall 1st Grade
Winter Gain (5 winters)
Family SES
Low SES
Mid SES
High SES
Gap
High-Low
279.81
271.99
277.889
298.47
26.48
194.97
191.30
210.19
186.11
-5.19
Summer Gain (4 summers)
1.12
-1.90
4.12
46.58
48.48 *
Gain Over Years 6 - 9
61.69
60.95
60.76
64.34
3.39
Test Score, End Year 9
547.55
522.33
552.40
595.49
73.16 *
(787)
(397)
(204)
(186)
(N)
Note: Significant t-tests for mean differences between Low SES and High SES groups are shown in Gap column. * < .05 (two-tailed tests)
Source: Karl L. Alexander, et al., “Lasting Consequences of the Summer Learning Gap,”
American Sociological Review, v72, April 2007
Reprinted from: “Parsing the Achievement Gap II,” written by Paul E. Barton and Richard J. Coley
for Educational Testing Service, April 2009
Lasting Consequences of the Summer Learning Gap
“Cumulative achievement gains over the first nine years of children’s
schooling mainly reflect school-year learning, whereas the high SES-low SES
achievement gap at the 9th grade mainly traces to differential
summer learning over the elementary years.
Early out-of-school summer learning differences, in turn, substantially
account for achievement-related differences by family SES in:
High school track placements (college preparatory or not)
High school noncompletion – need for credit retrieval
Four-year college attendance.”
Alexander, Karl, Doris Entwisle, and Linda Olson, “Lasting Consequences of the
Summer Learning Gap,” American Sociological Review, April 2007, pp.167-180.
Probability of Persistence in a Two-Year Institution by Highest Math Course
Algebra I, Geometry, or Less
Algebra II
Trigonometry, Stats or Algebra III
Pre-Calc or Calculus
82%
78%
76%
74%
72%
69%
67%
64%
61%
59%
56%
50%
High SES / Achievement
Middle SES / Achievement
Low SES / Achievement
Klepfer, Kasey and Jim Hull, High School Rigor and Good Advice: Setting Up Students to Succed,
Center for Public Education, National School Boards Association, October 2012, pp. 1-22.
Probability of Persistence in a Four-Year Institution by Highest Math Course
Algebra I, Geometry, or Less
91%
Algebra II
Trigonometry, Stats or Algebra III
94%
Pre-Calc or Calculus
92%
88%
87%
86%
81%
80%
78%
72%
70%
61%
High SES / Achievement
Middle SES / Achievement
Low SES / Achievement
Klepfer, Kasey and Jim Hull, High School Rigor and Good Advice: Setting Up Students to Succed,
Center for Public Education, National School Boards Association, October 2012, pp. 1-22.
Effects of Modified Calendars
1. A significant difference favoring districts that offered intersessions
– effect on achievement is cumulative.
2. Noticeably improves achievement with economically
disadvantaged or poor-achieving students out-performing
traditional calendar counterparts by .20 SD.
3. Suburban and rural modified calendar programs revealed greater
effects than urban programs (multi-track effect?).
4. Students, parents, and staffs are overwhelmingly positive
5. There are specific actions policymakers can take – such as involving
the community planning a program and providing quality
intersession activities – that can improve community acceptance.
Cooper, Harris, et al, The effects of modified school
calendars on student achievement and on school and
community attitudes,
Review of Educational Research,
Washington: Spring 2003, Vol. 73, Iss. 1: p. 14.
Summer achievement gain/loss
Northwest Evaluation Association (NWEA) – grades 3 through 9
559,964 students in reading and 542,057 in math – 24 states
Study 3/3 compared the scores of each student in the spring with their scores
in the fall to see the change at each score level by race/ethnicity and income
level:
 Low-performing students in all groups continue to grow during the
summer months, but minority and lower-income students grow less
 High-performing students tend to lose achievement during the
summer months, with minority students losing more than White
students.
 High-performing students in high-poverty schools lose more
achievement during the summer than similar students who are enrolled
in low-poverty schools.
Martha S. McCall, et al., Achievement Gaps: An Examination of Differences in Student Achievement
and Growth, Northwest Evaluation Association, November 2006. (access full study from NWEA
website)
2008 WLPT Results
12
11
10
9
G
r
a
d
e
8
7
6
5
4
3
2
1
K
-
2,000
4,000
Level 1 (No/Limited English)
6,000
8,000
10,000
Number of ELL Students
Level 2 (Intermediate)
Level 3 (Advanced)
12,000
14,000
Level 4 (Transition)
26
BMI Units Per Month
Change in BMI Across Groups *
Average
Students
Average AfricanAmerican Students
Average Hispanic
Average Initially
Students
Overweight Students
Source: “Summertime and Weight Gain”,
National Summer Learning Institute, 2010
Summer Learning Loss
Implications for Policy Makers
1. We can “choose to live with the diminished learning
opportunities and decay in skills that accompany the present
dominant school calendar” (Cooper et al., 1996, p. 263)
2. We can increase summer school opportunities and direct these
efforts in the most beneficial manner.
3. We can examine alternative school calendars and provide a
balanced calendar for a more continuous period of instruction.*
•
Rescheduled vacation is placed throughout the year into periods
called “intersessions.” Intersessions can be used as vacation
and/or instructional time for remediation, enrichment,
promotion or acceleration.
Three strands of Calendar Change:
§ Single-track – 73% - for academic purposes using
existing resources – 4-7 week summer break
§ Multiple-track - 27% for overcrowded facility - 8 week max.
§ Extended year – mandatory for all students
(KIPP Academy or MASS 20/20) = serious
funding requirements - up to 300 hrs/year
or optional for some students (summer school,
before/after/Saturday school, Intersession
opportunities to learn) + usually include
expanded day components = serious funding
requirements
The balanced calendar
reduces the long
summer break and
simply apportions
those days throughout
the school year,
producing more
frequent breaks and
thus limiting long
periods of instruction
days, as well as longer
vacations. Both
calendars feature 180
days of instruction,
with the modified
calendar balancing the
frequency of in-session
days with vacation
break days
= timely supplemental
learning opportunities.
Traditional 9-Month Calendar
45-15 Balanced Calendar
When it comes to learning, teaching, planning, partnering and play, how
much summer is enough?
Balanced for Learning Calendars
45-15 Quarter/Semester
60-15/20 Trimester
LISTING OF NON-TRADITIONAL CALENDARS 2004-2005 as of 10/28/05
Number of Schools on Non-Traditional Calendars: 3,274
Number of single track schools: 2,298 (73%)
Number of multiple track schools: 863 (27%)
Kinds of Calendars in Use
Kinds of Calendars in Use
F. 45-10
378
45-10
45-10
45-10
1-track
modified 1-track
2-track
M. 60-15
60
316
2
H. 45-15
60-15
60-15
60-15
60-15
60-15
766
45-15
45-15
45-15
45-15
45-15
45-15
45-15
1-track
modified 1-track
2-track
3-track
4-track
modified 3-track
modified 4-track
351
306
2
1
54
1
51
98
1-track
modified 1-track
3-track
5-track
modified 5-track
10
6
1
80
1
N. 60-20
686
60-20
60-20
60-20
60-20
60-20
60-20
60-20
60-20
1-track
modified 1-track
2-track
3-track
4-track
5-track
modified 4-track
modified 5-track
179
97
1
3
381
17
7
1
O. 90-30
155
90-30
90-30
90-30
1-track
2-track
4-track
5
1
149
2005-2006
F - First Day
O - Optional Intersession
Teacher Work Day
W - Winter Break
H - Half Day
S - Spring Break
August
F 2 3 4 5 6
7 8 9 10 11 12 13 4 5
14 15 16 17 18 19 20 11 12
21 22 23 24 25 26 27 18 19
28 29 30 31
25 26
September
1
6 7 8
13 14 15
20 21 22
27 28 29
November
1 2 3 4 5
6 7 8 9 10 11 12 4 5
13 14 15 16 17 18 19 11 12
20 21 22 23 24 25 26 18 19
27 28 29 30
25 26
December
1
6 7 8
13 14 15
20 21 22
27 28 29
February
March
1 2 3 4
1 2
5 6 7 8 9 10 11 5 6 7 8 9
12 13 14 15 16 17 18 12 13 14 15 16
19 20 21 22 23 24 25 19 20 21 22 23
26 27 28
26 27 28 29 30
1 2
7 8 9
14 15 16
21 22 23
28 29 30
L - Last Day
V - Vacation
October
2 3
9 10 2 3 4 5 6
16 17 9 10 11 12 13
23 24 16 17 18 19 20
30
23 24 25 26 27
30 31
January
2 3 1 2 3 4 5
9 10 8 9 10 11 12
16 17 15 16 17 18 19
23 24 22 23 24 25 26
30 31 29 30 31
1
7 8
14 15
21 22
28 29
6 7
13 14
20 21
27 28
April
3 4
10 11 2 3 4 5 6
17 18 9 10 11 12 13
24 25 16 17 18 19 20
31
23 24 25 26 27
30
May
June
July
3 4 5 6
1 2 3
10 11 12 13 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 2 3 4 5 6
17 18 19 20 11 12 13 L 15 16 17 9 10 11 12 13
24 25 26 27 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 16 17 18 19 20
31
25 26 27 28 29 30
23 24 25 26 27
30 31
1
7 8
14 15
21 22
28 29
1
7 8
14 15
21 22
28 29
Report cards issued
October 5, 2005
January 30, 2006
April 3, 2006
June 14, 2006
Intersession Dates
October 10-28, 2005
January 23-27, 2006
April 10-14, 2006
15 days in June/July
Faculty/Staff Absences
Schoolfield
Stanford 9 – 2001
Minority to DPS
66
70
700
65
58
600
60
50
40
48
43
42
41
35
500
400
30
300
20
200
10
100
0
Reading
Math
Language
PB
Schoolfield – African American
TOTAL DPS
0
95-96
96-97
97-98
98-99
99-00
00-01
01-02
Accelerated Reading Schoolfield
SOL – Fifth Grade - 2001
80
25,000
70
20,000
60
50
15,000
40
10,000
30
20
5,000
10
0
95-96
96-97
97-98
98-99
99-00
00-01
01-02
0
Writing
Reading
Math
Schoolfield
History
Science
DPS
Technology
Special Education
Referrals - Schoolfield
Discipline Referrals
Schoolfield
350
30
300
25
250
20
200
15
150
10
100
5
50
0
0
95-96
96-97
97-98
Class
98-99
99-00
Bus
00-01
01-02
95-96 96-97 97-98 98-99 99-00 00-01 01-02
Referred
Placed
WSSDA advocacy –
Action on WSSDA Positions
82. 7.3.2 School Year
The WSSDA shall initiate and/or support legislation which provides
state-funded training and planning time for staff and more academic
time for students, in the following manner:
• Provide for summer school programs;
• Substantially increase the length of the students’ school year;
• Assure that staff has planning and in-service time in excess of the
students’ calendar year; and
• Provide financial flexibility and incentives for local districts to
operate year-round instruction in any or all of their school
buildings. (adopted 1988; Amended 1990, 1992, and 2005)
Legislative Committee Recommendation: “DO PASS”
WSSDA Model Policy No. 2220
Instruction
School Calendar
In order to permit staff, students and parents to make plans for
their own work and vacation schedules, the board will adopt a
school calendar or calendar or calendars by June 1 of each year.
Multiple calendars may be developed where some schools are
on modified calendars for the forthcoming school year.
Following board action, staff, students, parents and patrons will
be advised of the school calendar.
Legal References: RCW 28A.150.203
28A.150.220
School year –Beginning—End
Basic Education Act – DefinitionsProgram requirements – Program
accessibility –Rules and regulations
28A.330.100 (7) Additional powers of board
Adoption Date:
Yakima School District Policy and Procedures 2220 Page 1 of 1
School Calendar
In order to permit staff, students and parent(s)/guardian(s) to make plans
for their own work and vacation schedules, the board shall adopt a school
instructional calendar for the forthcoming school year by March 3.
Following this action, staff, students, parent(s)/guardian(s), and patrons will
be advised of the school calendar.
The board directs the superintendent to prepare appropriate procedures to
implement this policy.
Legal
School Calendar Procedure
By March 1, the superintendent or designee will form a committee involving
principals and Yakima Education Association (YEA) members for study
purposes with a three (3) year projection. The calendar will be reviewed
and recommendations will be made to superintendent and board.
A Tale of Two States
Washington
Kentucky
1983 – “Nation at Risk” (attend to
Content, Expectations & TIME)
1983 – “A Nation at Risk” (attend to
Content, Expectations & TIME)
1992-93– GCERF (Gov. Gardner)
Commission on Student Learning
1990 – Kentucky Education
Reform Act – 1st out of 50
1993 – Legislature awards ten planning
grants for evaluation of modified
calendar; 2000 2nd request for district
planning grants proposed but unfunded
1994 ; 2000 - “Prisoners of Time”
1994; 2000 – “Prisoners of Time”
1994 – Pritchard Committee Stakeholder
Study recommended all districts consider
calendar modification to support student
learning; change should be K-12 district
1996 – Northwest Association for YearRound Education (NWAYRE) – advocacy
and statewide conferences
1998 – Kentucky Assoc. of Year-Round
Education holds biennial conferences;
KOPI leadership
2003 – 8,000 WA students attend school
on a modified calendar; posted on SBE
NWAYRE disbands
2003 – 116/176 K-12 districts use
modified calendars-6-8 weeks summer off
Extended School Year funds available for
Intersession supplemental programming
2013 – KYREA absorbed into other Dept.
of Ed functions; YRE continues to expand
2013 – 1,200 WA students attend school
on a modified calendar –
2012 Brief ( Research Summary )
• All young people experience learning losses when they do not engage in
educational activities during the summer. (Cooper, 1996; Alexander, Entwisle, and
Olson, 2001, 2006)
• On average, students lose approximately 2.6 months of grade level equivalency in
mathematical computation skills, (factual and procedural knowledge) over the
summer months. (Cooper, 1996;Alexander and Entwisle, and Olson 2007)
• Lower-income children and youth experience greater summer learning losses
than their higher income peers who show limited growth for the time away from
formal education – 1 month growth in reading for high socioeconomic students.
(Cooper, 1996; Alexander, Entwisle, and Olson, 2001.2006)
• Many English Language Learners (ell) and low –income students experience loss
of academic language skills and thinking skills in the English language over the
summer. (Guardana, 1999)
• Summer learning loss contributes to the achievement gap in reading performance
between lower and higher income children and youth, high-school placement,
high school noncompletion, and four year college attendance and completion
(Alexander, Entwisle, and Olson 1996, 2007)
…………research summary continued
• College persistence is linked to high school rigorous course taking, Advanced
Placement/International Baccalaureate courses, periodic communication with an
academic advisor. (Center for Education Policy, National School Boards Association,
October 22012)
• Large numbers of students who qualify for federally subsidized meals do not have the
same level of access to nutritious meals during the summer as they do during the
school year. (Food Research and Action Center,2002)
• Student body mass index (BMI) increases June – September and decreases
September –June. (University of Indiana, 2006)
• Studies show that out-of-school time is a dangerous time for unsupervised,
unoccupied children and unemployed teens. (Carnegie Council, 1994)
•
Parents greatest concern for their children occurs over the lengthy summer break.
(Public Agenda, 2004)
• Students present concerns about summer learning loss and are at a readiness state to
consider school calendar change. (Public Agenda, 2004)
Rigor/Relevance Framework
TM
Knowledge
Taxonomy
Evaluation
6
“Judge the
Outcome”
Adaptation
Assimilation
Synthesis
5
“Putting Together”
Analysis
Students have the competence, that when confronted
with perplexing unknowns they are able to use their
extensive knowledge base and skills to create unique
solutions and take action that further develops their
skills and knowledge.
Students extend and refine their knowledge
so they can use it automatically and
routinely to analyze and solve problems and
create solutions
4
“Taking Apart”
Application
3
“Making use of
Knowledge”
Comprehension
2
“Confirming”
Knowledge
Acquisition
Application
Students gather and store bits of knowledge and
information and are expected to remember or
understand this acquired knowledge.
Students use acquired knowledge to solve problems,
design solutions, and complete work. The highest level of
application is to apply appropriately to new and
unpredictable situations.
1
“Information
Gathering”
Relevance
Makes Rigor
Happen!
1
2
3
4
Knowledge in ????
Discipline
Apply Knowledge in
???? Discipline
Apply Knowledge
Across Disciplines
Apply Knowledge to
Apply Knowledge to
Real World
Real World
Predictable Situations Unpredictable
Situations
Application Model
5
Strategies
that
Work
Reflective Policy Questions
Understanding the impact of poverty on formal learning and the positive
impact of excellent teachers on students, why do we continue to plan the
school calendar year resources to disconnect students for up to 12
weeks from their caring, dedicated teachers without formally questioning
the wisdom?
What would it take to seriously address transforming the 19th Century
child labor calendar to a 21st Century learning/thinking education
calendar?
Should the local school board become the policymaker group that
constructively advocates for our district to develop a school calendar
year that evidences seamless connections between allocated and
supplemental opportunities to learn in a safe, supportive environment.
What role can our annual school calendar committee have in exploring
options for the traditional school calendar year?
School Improvement Plans (SIPs) WAC 18016-220(2)(d)(i-iv) shall address, but are not limited to:
•
•
•
•
•
Characteristics of Successful Schools including safe and
supportive learning environments;
Educational Equity Factors such as, but not limited to: gender,
race, ethnicity, culture, language and physical/mental
ability…giving each student what they need and when and how
they need it to reach their achievement potential;
Use of technology to facilitate instruction;
Parent, family, and community involvement and,
Evaluation of the traditional September-June calendar,
schedules and issues surrounding the use of instructional
time (compulsory and supplemental) and the impact on
student opportunities to learn.
Sample DRAFT language suggestion only
Single-Track K-12 Modified Calendar
Disadvantages
(usually dissipate after first year due to
planning and recognition of advantages)
•
•
•
•
•
•
availability of childcare
the need for and cost of airconditioning during summer
conflicts with the more common
district schedule
facilitating building cleaning and
repair
children want same schedule as
friends or relatives the other
schools
complexity of scheduling family
vacations if children are in
different schools on more than
one schedule
Shields and Oberg, Year Round Schooling: Promises and
Pitfalls, Scarecrow Press, Lanham, MA, 2000.
Advantages
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
intersession opportunities: remediation,
enrichment & acceleration
reduced summer learning loss
reduced re-teaching and review on return from
breaks
time for teacher planning and reflection
more motivation for both teachers and students
decreased vandalism
fewer disciplinary referrals
regular extended preparation time for teachers
relief of both personal and interpersonal tensions
more conversation and reflection about teaching
and learning
a change in the organization of instructional units
more regular visits with non-custodial parents
increased parental participation
increased community involvement
Modified Calendar for SECONDARY Schools
Disadvantages
•
Extra work is made for secretaries
and support personnel to track
students’ courses and statistics
•
Students may have to participate
in sports during intersession
•
Students may take “unfair”
advantage of opportunities for
remediation (by slacking off
during the regular term)
•
Teachers choosing to teach
regularly at intersession may
experience burnout
Additional Advantages
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
Increased chances for remediation and acceleration
Increased numbers in advanced courses
Increased positive attitude toward self & coursework
Decrease in dropout rate
Increased graduation course completion
Increase graduation rate
Flexibility for students
Facilitates student jobs
Benefits of participating in sports (and other
extracurricular activities) during intersession
Increased opportunities for teacher employment
Students can accelerate graduation
Professional development opportunities for teachers
(visiting other programs)
Better college preparation opportunities (students may
take more classes)
Teacher Job Satisfaction and Year-Round Education
Benefits to teachers:
• For new and newer teachers, the two-three week break at the end of every quarter or nine weeks allows time to
regroup, reflect, and evaluate personal progress toward mastery of teaching.
• Teachers, especially those with less than three years experience, feel that the breaks throughout the year
provide a more balanced approach to their emotional needs, which contributed to a decrease in teacher
absenteeism.
• Breaks give teachers valuable curriculum planning time and contribute to classroom innovation.
• Many teachers who teach intersession find the experience rewarding: opportunity to earn extra income,
teach different students, teach a different grade level, use a variety of instructional methods, and teach a
different subject or topic. Other teachers used the intersession breaks to relax, enjoy off season travel and
rejuvenate away from school.
• More teacher stability in terms of turnover.
• Increased teacher retention in the profession, particularly the first three years and beyond.
• Part-time teaching opportunities during intersession are an advantage for teachers on maternity or family
leave: stay in teaching loop and keep skills fresh.
• Reduced teacher absence; recapture substitute dollars
Haser, Shelly Gismondi and Nasser, Ilham,
Year-round Education: Change and choice for Schools and Teachers,
Scarecrow Education, 2005.
K-12 Districts Calendar Balanced Year
• Socorro School District, Socorro, Texas 1990
• Hawaii Public Schools – state calendar 2006
• Indianapolis Independent Schools – 2010
• Nashville Metropolitan Public Schools – 2012
• Oklahoma City Public Schools - 2012
Pending
• Chicago Public Schools-under discussion 2012
• Ashville, North Carolina
• Bozeman, Montana
• plus numerous individual schools
Google Alert - Year Round Schools
QUESTION: I am searching for information on the effects and demands which
year-round schools place on the yearly budget compared to the costs of the
traditional school calendar. Have you any information I might use to compare
and contrast these costs?
Single track year round education simply reorganizes instructional
days. Teacher and administrator contracts remain nearly the same as before.
The number of days students are in school will be the same (180 in 30 states).
So costs should be the same or nearly the same, as those in a traditional
school.
The schedule has been modified, but the work day/time have not
increased. So the single biggest item in any budget, personnel costs, should
remain the same as also with utilities, transportation and food costs.
•
National Association for Year-round Education, (NAYRE)
Frequently Asked Questions About Year-Round Education, 2000.
Based on my experience as superintendent of a district with both
year-round and traditional calendars, I can attest to the fact that
the cost to maintain the one elementary school on a year-round
calendar was no more than that of schools (similarly situated)
operating on a traditional calendar when comparing:
student learning
labor and nonlabor costs
transportation expenditures
food services
utilization of building space
school attendance
The year-round school excelled in all of the areas reviewed
Douglas Roby, “Experiencing School Year-round: An Administrators Perspective,” Balancing
the School Calendar, edited by Carolyn Kneese and Charles Ballinger, Rowan &
Littlefield Education, 2009, pp. 65-73.
Intersessions
Intersession literally means “between learning sessions. This
concept is part of the year-round education philosophy and may
be utilized as another learning opportunity, the same as summer
school. Once you have the year-round education calendar in
place, the next step is to work on Intersessions.
When you start approaching one of your calendar
change goals i.e. to provide the opportunity for continuous
learning
Funding
Intersession funding varies with the financial situation and
philosophy of the district or state. The following is a short and
certainly not exhaustive list of possible methods of funding,
depending on the type of program being offered.
Kemp, Byron, The ABCs of Year-Round Education, published by
National Association for Year-Round Education, 1995.
• funding (cont.)
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
Funded as traditional summer schools
Categorical program funding Title I, Title III etc.
Lottery grants
User pays
Teacher-training grants for teachers in training
Fundraising
Community or city grants
Special need grants
Bilingual/ELL funding
Recreation and community based organization funding
Corporate sponsorship or donations
Industrial funding
College or university funding
Fiscal Considerations and Year Round Schooling – Chapter 10
Year-Round Schooling Promises & Pitfalls
Carolyn M. Shields & Steven Lynn Oberg, 2000
•
•
•
•
Although most studies suggest that YRS are more expensive to operate than
traditional-calendar schools (TCS)……..regarding Operating Costs there is little
difference between that of a single-track year-round school and a traditionalcalendar school unless the calendar change has been accompanied by
additional voluntary programs or building modifications.
Transitional Costs – not recurring – preparing for and planning the
implementation of YRS – investigating appropriateness of the change, hiring
consultants, printing brochures, engaging in public hearings and
consultations…….pre-service training and planning time for administrators
and, to a lesser extent, the teachers – although they do need to be “on board”
with the plan! Air conditioning can be a significant costs with the continuing
expense of operating to be included in the calculation of operating costs.
Special funding and incentive revenues: planning grants, pupil bonus
Incidental differences: incidental differences related to some unanticipated
savings that accrue – see Schoolfield Elementary, Danville, VA examples
Critical
Thinking
Skills
Workforce
Skills
Student
Life
Skills
Critical Thinking and Analytical Skills Most Important to Postsecondary Students
in the 21st Century
Critical Thinking, Problem Solving, Questioning
64%
Accessing, Analyzing, and Synthesizing Information
37%
Communication
29%
Innovation, Creativity, Curiosity, Imagination
24%
Ethical Decision-Making
24%
Agility, Adaptability, Flexibility
17%
Global Citizenship, Social and Cross Cultural
Interaction
15%
Collaboration
13%
Initiative, Self-Direction, Entrepreneurialism,
Resourcefulness
10%
Productivity and Accountability
10%
Leadership
Other
Multi-Disciplinary Decision-Making
8%
7%
5%
0%
10%
20%
30%
40%
50%
60%
70%
Results of a survey conducted by the research division of the Atlantic Media Company of 115 respondants who were asked the question: “Which of the
following are the most important skills postsecondary students in the 21st century should learn? (Select up to 3)”, published June 2011.
Lifelong-Learner Competencies
• Plan and conduct research
• Gather, organize, and analyze data, evaluate processes
and products; and draw conclusions.
• Think analytically, critically, and creatively to pursue new
ideas, and acquire new knowledge and make decisions.
• Understand and apply principles of logic and reasoning;
develop, evaluate, and defend arguments
• Seek, recognize and understand systems, patterns,
themes, and interactions.
• Apply and adapt a variety of appropriate strategies to
solve new and increasingly complex problems.
(continue)
Lifelong-Learner Competencies (cont.)
• Acquire and use precise language to clearly communicate
ideas, knowledge, and processes
• Explore and express ideas and opinions using multiple
media the arts, and technology.
• Demonstrate ethical behavior and respect for diversity
though daily actions and decision making.
• Participate fully in civic life, and act on democratic ideals
within the context of community and global
interdependence.
• Understand and follow a physically active lifestyle that
promotes good health and wellness.
• Apply habits of mind and metacognitive strategies to
plan, monitor, and evaluate one’s own work.
4 Seasons of Learning
In this 21st Century, there is
every reason to craft school
calendar infrastructure for
four seasons of learning.
“Preferred Future” – Begin with the End in Mind
Step-by-Step – a List of What it Will Take to Get There
Preferred Future
• Calendar balanced for
learning for ALL
•Reduce summer learning
loss, inequity, inefficiency
•Provide timely intersession
learning support
Current Calendar Reality
Traditional School Calendar
+/Summer School,
Before/After/Saturday School
Summary
In a performance-based learning environment, personalized to student need,
it is imperative to link the regular academic program with supplementary
learning time in ways that:
• Provide timely assistance close to the identification of a learning concern
• Contribute to continuity of learning for all students
• Open “downtime” for reflection, play and innovation for learners & teachers
• Maintain consistent parent/school/community partnerships
• Utilize our public education facilities and equipment full-time
Thereby, increasing our chances of becoming the learner fair and focused
community of our vision and mission statements.
HELPFUL WEBCITE: www.nayre.com
Video
K-12 Districts Calendar Balanced Year
• Socorro School District, Socorro, Texas 1990
• Hawaii Public Schools – state calendar 2006
• Indianapolis Independent Schools – 2010
• Nashville Metropolitan Public Schools – 2012
• Oklahoma City Public Schools - 2012
Pending
• Chicago Public Schools-under discussion 2012
• Ashville, North Carolina
• Bozeman, Montana
• plus numerous individual schools
Google Alert - Year Round Schools
National Association for
Year Round Education
www.nayre.org