Oh boy, here we go again with the "blah blah blah." 🤦 Look, nobody’s saying the system shouldn't be overhauled. But demanding that every single kid has to be stuck in a classroom for at least 7.5 hours of daylight just because that’s what you personally want for your child is... well, it's pretty heartless, if you ask me.
Paul Davis2 said:So, are you really grinding 8 to 9 hours a day? And if so, where are your kids while you're busy doing that?
Look, I totally get wanting to make sure your kids are looked after while you're at work. Nobody wants their little ones sitting home alone. But what I just can't wrap my head around is why you're backing this proposal that every single child has to be supervised—basically locked up in school—regardless of whether the parents or even the kids actually want them there. Seriously, wouldn't offering free after-school programs be a much better solution for everyone involved?
Paul Davis2 said:I'm with you there. We need to shorten the school day, boost actual learning and student happiness, cut back the paperwork, move special education programs elsewhere, and—most importantly—raise teacher salaries.
Is it just you, or do some people literally just plug their ears and sing "la la la" whenever someone tries to make a point? Honestly, no biggie, but I’d rather know now so we don't waste our breath typing away at nothing. 👍
Paul Davis2 said:How exactly is an 8th grader going to "pay the price"? They'll be stuck at school until 3:00 PM instead of leaving at 1:30 PM—plus having to deal with PE or computer lab in a different shift. They'll be forced to eat a free hot meal and then a snack. What, is someone going to sit there and tutor them in chemistry? Poor kids, really.
Oh, please. They aren't "poor things"—this is actually a total win for them. 🙄
These clueless parents, for instance, don't realize their kids just hit the jackpot. Honestly, they're being completely ridiculous.
If the folks over at the Department had actually used their heads and started by investing in school infrastructure—you know, making sure buildings are actually functional, providing decent hot meals, and offering after-school programs for any student whose parents want them—they would have actually won people over. They might have even earned some public trust. And if, *after* doing all that heavy lifting, they had actually sat down with teachers to bake their input into the full-day school proposal, this whole thing wouldn't be such an absolute train wreck. It might have actually worked in some capacity! But instead, they’re trying to build a house starting with the roof. It’s just not going to fly. Any school smart enough to join this pilot program will grab that funding and use it to upgrade their facilities, which is great. But unfortunately, the students—who end up feeling more like prisoners than kids—are the ones who'll pay the price.
Counting every single minute or hour a teacher spends on lesson prep is just pointless nitpicking.
What actually matters is motivating teachers to be the absolute best they can be—to show up and give it their all. Sure, a decent paycheck is huge, but it isn't everything. You need solid working conditions, genuine support, respect, and the freedom to actually try out new ideas. We should be fueling creativity, not stifling it.
It would be amazing if every school across the country provided a dedicated workspace where teachers could just focus without being interrupted. But honestly, we also need to trust them to decide how and where they work best. Some people knock out a task in an hour, while others might need two. Taking more time doesn't mean someone is a worse teacher. (And what even counts as "work"? If you’re lying in bed at night fleshing out a brilliant new project idea, is that work? I'd say yes.) From what I've seen, the truly great teachers usually put in way more hours than most people realize.
At the end of the day, true educational reform comes down to support, help, and motivation. That includes supporting those who realize teaching isn't their calling and helping them find a better fit elsewhere 😉. It really boils down to this one sentiment I once saw on a protest sign: "We are the only reform you've got."
driftingranger2 said:My brother told me he’s skipping the info session next year. He says those eight-hour marathons are a total waste of time. Nothing actually useful gets covered—it's just people shuffling through endless slide decks all day.
I ended up pulling my kid out of his tech elective back in seventh grade. In sixth grade, they had this incredible teacher who really pushed them, but then they got a new instructor who didn't have the same spark.
By sixth grade, the class just wasn't challenging him at all. He felt exactly the same way you did—that they weren't gaining any actual skills, or they'd spend the entire period doing something he could have mastered in five minutes on his own. Even though he was easily getting an A 😉, we decided to support his choice to drop the class.
Bryan Wells11 said:Could you please list your pedagogical credentials? Just so I know which expert I am debating here, because—with all due respect—you sound like someone who is either frustrated with their own working hours or completely unacquainted with developmental psychology. I don't know, maybe I'm wrong, but just because you're "looking at PowerSchool" doesn't make you an expert.
Let's skip the condescension and the attempts to start a fight, please.
This is the Parents and Kids PDF, where parents share their perspectives, and they have every right to do so. If you want to have a debate about pedagogy, go find another subforum for that.
Paul Davis2 said:Look, you’re reading way too much into this—you’re overanalyzing instead of just seeing the core issue. The bottom line is simple: we have some of the lowest hourly pay rates in all of Europe, student competency is dropping, and everyone is miserable—the kids, the parents, and the teachers. It's a total stalemate where nobody wins.
We’re looking at a pilot program that comes with funding, infrastructure investment, and a framework designed to align with successful school systems worldwide—the kind where student outcomes and overall satisfaction actually trend upward. It isn't being shoved down anyone's throat as some magic fix; it's being presented as a flexible foundation. And yet, somehow, it's still hitting a wall.
So, what you're saying is we might actually end up with smarter, happier kids, satisfied parents, and teachers who don't hate their jobs? Sounds like a plan to me. 😁
Paul Davis2 said:An 8-to-3 schedule is pretty standard across the USA—literally everywhere. In places where the day seems shorter, they aren't actually doing continuous instruction; it includes lunch breaks and various group activities. It’s not a solid block from 8 to 3; it’s a series of breaks, meals, and social periods. Trying to run non-stop instruction from 8 to 3 just isn't realistic.
It’s like everyone is just parroting the same old lines over and over again. It’s become such a cliché—you know, that whole "wherever there's a Turk, you'll find little Moe" kind of thing. Everyone's just repeating it like a broken record.
In the US, the tradition of full-day schooling has been around for at least fifty years. My husband grew up with that setup—he had full-day classes throughout his entire elementary school years, which back then lasted until the end of sixth grade. His older brother and sister went through the exact same thing. It was a long time ago, but that's just how things were done.
Our traditions are just built differently here. Look, I’m not saying that locking the door every single time is always the ultimate answer, but why on earth is full-day schooling considered the gold standard? I’m genuinely curious about the logic behind it. I don't want the usual "because everyone else is doing it" excuse—that doesn't explain anything. What is the actual, tangible advantage? Mandatory. All-day classes? Seriously? That sounds like a total grind.
I just hope this extra hour of American language arts doesn't give some genius the bright idea to "enrich" the curriculum with more useless filler. Kids really need to master the basics: reading, writing, listening, and speaking.
I don't know why people act so shocked that today’s teenagers are actually more fluent in English than their own native tongue. You see high schoolers struggling to string a sentence together, relying on awkward, literal translations from English slang that just don't work in formal speech.
They struggle to get through even a decent-length article because they honestly don't grasp the vocabulary.
What does "scathing" mean? What about "nullify"? How about "paradigm"? Or "trajectory"?
With this new afternoon block being added to the school day, one activity absolutely has to be reading. I’m talking about setting up a cozy little nook with beanbags and armchairs, stocked with everything from Lionel Messi biographies to chick lit.
Honestly, I’d implement a reading corner like that in EVERY single school, and keep it open all day long. If a student is having a hard time focusing during a lecture, they could—with permission—head over to the reading room where the Wi-Fi is totally blocked. Then they can just sit there and read. Or, you know, stare at the ceiling.
I’m really enjoying this thread. There are so many thoughtful and sensible points being made here. 👍
Looking at everything everyone has shared, I’d love to pitch an alternative to the Department of Education. Instead of just pushing for "all-day school," why not launch a comprehensive initiative called something like "21st century teaching"? Here is what I think that project should actually look like:
- Full-day programs in all elementary schools for grades K through 4. - Modernizing and upgrading our schools so they actually match the era we live in. - Adding proper kitchens, dining areas, and cozy lounge spaces in every building. - Hiring more support staff—like janitors and cooks—and making sure they get a decent living wage. - Giving teachers a much-needed raise. - Increasing the number of specialists and counselors on campus. - Beefing up tutoring and extracurriculars, while letting older students (if they're into it!) have the option to knock out their homework during school hours.
Did I miss anything?
That’s how you actually improve the school environment without turning these buildings into glorified prisons.
Susan James said:Do you think they'll just end up wasting that money on supposed salary hikes for those experimental pilot programs in certain school districts? I'm right there with you!
I’m not totally in the loop on where exactly all that money is headed or how big these charter school raises are actually going to be (I think I read somewhere it could range from 2% to 25%🍿). From what I can gather, they aren't even planning on renovating old buildings or breaking ground on new ones—it's just about outfitting the schools we already have. It makes me wonder, though: if they aren't building anything new, how on earth do they plan to pull off this full-day schedule, and where is all those billions of dollars actually going?
It seems like every single Secretary of Agriculture thinks it’s their divine calling to be a "reformer" and leave some massive mark on the Country. They always assume (along with their tiny inner circle) that they know exactly which overhaul is needed. And in their minds, a real reform always has to mean flipping everything upside down and diving headfirst into chaos.
It’s like nobody ever thought to actually go out and talk to teachers. You know, maybe ask them if they have any bright ideas about what changes would actually help improve teaching quality or student results? Nope. Apparently, the Secretary of Agriculture and his buddies know way better—and they only see what a school looks like when they're showing up for a parent-teacher conference.
And honestly, why hasn't anyone suggested a step-by-step approach? If you take things slow, it’s easy to backtrack one step if you realize you made a mistake and pivot in a new direction. But if you sprint 60 miles in the wrong direction, there's no turning back. You’re just stuck dealing with the mess you made.
Instead of chasing after all these half-baked, "revolutionary" schemes, someone really should have focused on reforming how we integrate climate science into the curriculum across every single school in the country. That’s the kind of move that actually moves the needle on quality and student outcomes without all the unnecessary drama or sarcasm. Honestly, while they were at it, they could have looked into restructuring our federal holiday schedule too.
Carl Bishop2 said:Since a certain percentage of students fail their high school exit exams every single year, it feels like passing isn't actually a requirement for everyone to move forward.
Edit:
So, looking at the numbers, about 19% of students fail at least one mandatory exam. That’s honestly a pretty significant chunk of the class.
Yeah, I see what you mean. About 32% of vocational students and 3.2% of college-prep students failed. Given all those little hiccups—like someone signing their full legal name when they shouldn't, showing up late to the testing center, or just bubbling in the wrong answers on the Scantron—I’d argue the goal is really for 100% of the college-track kids to pass. Vocational students have their certifications anyway, so they don't necessarily need the exit exam to move forward.