Four-Day School Weeks, you've GOT to be kidding, right?

A recent article in TIME magazine has me more than a little verklempt! It seems that rising gas prices, poor infrastructure and lack of funding is prompting some school systems across the U.S. to resort to a 4-day school week.

Ok, what part of this actually makes sense? Save $$-Ruin a Life?

In math and science achievement, our kids' test scores already rate behind (and in descending order): Korea, China, Japan, Russia, Netherlands, Canada, England, Australia, and students in all of these countries go to school more days than our kids in the U.S., on average three weeks longer! Students in China and Korea go to school for 220 days per year; that's 20+% more than our average national requirement of 180 days. And, with shorter breaks, teachers in these countries don't spend an inordinate amount of time reviewing materials to bring kids back "up to speed".

If anything, U.S. students should be attending school MORE days per year AND year-round to avoid empty, under-utilized school buildings, working families with daycare problems and dumb/dumber kids. Ideas like 4-day school weeks has got to make home-schooling look better and better to parents who really want their kids to do well in life.