PEORIA MAGAZINE August 2022

Traditional

Modified August 3

First day for students

August 17

Fall break

3 days 3 days 10 days 5 days May 30 54 days

10 days 3 days 10 days 10 days May 31 42 days

Thanksgiving Winter break Spring break

Last day of school

Summer break

teachers and students. “There is simply not enough evidence to suggest that students benefit from schooling with a shorter summer break,” the petition states. “It is neither socially nor academically beneficial because most American schools do not operate on that schedule.” Among the concerns raised in the petition: • Fami lies and employees with children who attend other districts with a traditional calendar would be negatively impacted; • Parents would have the additional burden of arranging child care during the extended fall and spring breaks; • More economically stable families may leave the district; • Family summer vacationplanswould be disrupted; • Summer job opportunities for students who need to work to pay An initial survey of union members indicated teachers were split 50-50. “Given that data, I told the superin tendent we would stay out of the fray,” said Jeff Adkins-Dutro, president of the Peoria Federation of Teachers. “Later, however, we surveyed our members again and the vast majoritywere against switching to a new calendar.” That second survey of 663 union members showed 447 – two-thirds — in favor of keeping the traditional calendar. “My concern,” Adkins-Dutro said, “is about teachers working breaks (and) for college would be reduced. WHAT TEACHERS SAY

getting burned out. This schedule was touted as a kind of stress reducer for teachers and students. If we have to have a high number of teachers work the breaks, I worry that they won’t get enough of a break throughout the year.” WHAT’S HAPPENING ELSEWHERE? “We believe that districts understand the needs of their communities best, and as such, calendars are left up to their discretion as long as statutory requirements aremet for theminimum term length and minimum number of actual pupil attendance days,” said Liam ChanHodges, media coordinator for the Illinois State Board of Education (ISBE). All school calendars, he said, are submitted to the appropriate Regional Office of Education or Intermediate Service Center for approval. Those are then sent to ISBE for approval. Beginning Aug. 3, Peoria’s schools are starting anywhere from seven days to two full weeks earlier than neighboring districts. Washington elementary schools begin Aug. 10, Morton schools Aug. 11, followed by East Peoria and Washington high schools on Aug. 12. Germantown Hills begins Aug. 15, with Metamora High School starting Aug. 16. Peoria Heights, Dunlap, Limestone and Pekin districts and East Peoria elementary schools begin Aug. 17. In the U.S., the start of a school cal endar varies by region, according to

Dianne Renn, associate chairwoman and associate professor at Illinois State University’s Department of Educational Administration and Foundations. “Schools remain under local control largely because they are funded by local taxes, and no community willingly gives up the purse strings and control over core values represented in education,” said Renn, who has 40 years of experience as a teacher, teacher educator and policy expert. “Many people have input into this highly localized system of funding and governance, so variation is bound to result. “I am from Wisconsin where, by legislative mandate, no district can start school before Labor Day, not because of farm labor, particularly, but to have a student labor force for the tourist trade,” she said. “So local context matters, even though there has been standardization of school calendars. Geography matters.” Wisconsin is not likely alone in needing high school and college student s “as l abor for shops , restaurants, resorts and al l the features that go into a lively summer tourist economy,” she said. The 180-day calendar used by the American school system is a bit of an anomaly, said Renn. Japan, for example, has its students in classrooms 240 days each school year. China, Finland, Germany, Singapore and the U.K. have 199-day calendars.

AUGUST 2022 PEORIA MAGAZINE 35