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Pros And Cons Of Extending The LAUSD School Year
Desks spaced six feet apart in a classroom at Panorama High School in the L.A. Unified School District. The nation's second-largest school system hopes to welcome back middle- and high schoolers to campuses in late April.
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Last week, L.A. Unified School District Superintendent Austin Beutner announced a plan to possibly extend the 2021-22 school year, adding one extra week in August and another in January.
Those weeks would allow for teachers and staff to plan, and provide additional time for students to process the trauma and anxiety brought on by the pandemic. The proposed schedule breaks down to six additional days of learning and four days of staff training.
John Rogers, co-founder and director of UCLA's Institute for Democracy, Education and Access, says the proposal has some merit.
“Strategies that try to expand the amount of learning time and target that expanded learning time towards communities with greatest needs are terrific,” he says.
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But adding extra days to the school calendar is a tough sell.
A recent parent survey on the matter garnered more than 376,000 responses, with 44% preferring the school calendar be left as is.
The LAUSD board is expected to vote on the proposal later this month.
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