The Senate Education Committee is hearing from experts about what year-round education would look like in Mississippi. It would remove the traditional summer break, and create several smaller two or three-week breaks throughout the year.
State Superintendent Carey Wright says changing the school calendar will not be enough to improve education in Mississippi. She says breaks between sessions must also be used for additional student engagement programs. "That's the reason during these intersessions, whether they're 15 days, or 20 days, or however the calendar that the school system wants to use, that really gives those kids an opportunity to really accelerate their learning. And I think there's kids who need their learning enriched," says Wright.
Corinth School District has used an extended calendar for 5 years, and Superintendent Edward Childress says parents like the short but frequent breaks for vacation and the extra learning opportunities. But, he says there are some hurdles to overcome when keeping schools open year-round. "You've got to keep in mind transportation, you've got to make sure your foodservice program is operational. You've got to look at personnel, can you staff it? At the same time, student assessment becomes an issue. Because children are out at different times of the year, we don't have the major part of the regular instruction, so we've had to look at how we could adjust the student assessment calendar," says Childress.
Legislators say they are not looking to enact a mandatory statewide change, but are considering ways to make year-round learning easier for Mississippi's school districts.
