Year-Round Schooling as an Avenue to Major Structural Reform

Abstract

This article reports on a study that sought to experiment with multiple education reforms in the context of an extended school calendar year. Three schools, with very different characteristics, undertook to extend their school year to approximately 223 days (from the previous 180 days), reorganize funding to provide more days of schooling for many students, and increase the length of the work year, and consequently the salaries, of teachers. All three schools were able to demonstrate increases in academic achievement, a high level of parent and teacher satisfaction, and a cost-effective use of existing school facilities. Implications for education reform and year-round schooling are discussed.