Does More School, Mean Better Ed?

Last Update: 9/29/2009 2:01 am

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More Class Time Ahead?

NORTHWOOD, IA---Improving American student test scores is an age old debate.

There are lots of different ideas about how to change the current system.

President Barack Obama would like to explore the possibility of longer school days or extending the school year.

While it's nothing more than an idea at this point, it's an issue that everyone seems to have an opinion about in Northwood.

Northwood Kensett Senior Sam Arnold is kind of your all-American kid

He's involved in football, track, basketball, math club, national honor society and student council.

He's the type most teachers want in their class.

Arnold's got pretty good grades and the 17 year old's favorite subject right now is anatomy.

"I'm thinking about going into the medical field and it's really interesting and you get to know a lot of the body parts and it's a lot of fun," said Arnold.

Even though he's not one of the kids who really needs extra time in the classroom, he sees some positives in the idea,” we’d have more time to learn and we can learn new things that we might not have gotten to, or new chapters in our books," said Arnold.

At Northwood Kensett, opinions are mixed on the more school discussion.

Some think it's a great idea, others say it might take time away from other important activities.

Principal Keith Fritz says more than 90% of kids are involved in some sort of extracurricular activity.

"So if we say lets extend the school day to 5 p.m. how does it negatively impact the activities for kids," said Fritz.

Junior Emma Hendrikson thinks adding more school time could discourage those struggling to graduate

"The ones that have dropped out like thinking about coming back well then now its longer or now its more and they don't have time, if they have kids or it's going to be harder for us to have jobs," said Hendrikson.

While everyone seems to be in favor of improving student performance, the key will be in finding the right combination.

If it can be done, Arnold believes more school could be beneficial to everyone.

"I can see it helping a lot just because you get to spend more time learning things that you might not have gotten in your regular school day," said Arnold.

"It's important to remember that this issue is still in the discussion phase.

While the Obama administration is expressing an interest in more school, there is no word about how much more or how many days that could include.

Principal Fritz said he is always in favor of improving student results.

He said any policy should consider individual school districts and state results.

Fritz said the dropout rate in Iowa is generally lower than many other states.

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