There is No Place Like Home

In 2009 Obama's education secretary Arne Duncan, in all seriousness, shared his vision of American schools as the center of community life and I dare say family life. He said, “I think schools should be open 12, 13, 14 hours a day, seven days a week, 11-12 months of the year.” The federal education agendas for decades have encouraged and even mandated that schools "increase instructional time" which is a term that disguises the real purpose behind increasing school hours and school years -- which is to replace family free time with an institutionalized childhood.

A news story out of Colorado today is only one of dozens of stories from across the country reporting significant increases in school hours for especially our youngest children. While living in Nebraska I organized several grassroots organization (here, and here) with the purpose of defending the integrity of the family, the innocence of children, and preserving the role of parents in directing the upbringing and education of their children. "Instructional time" and "attendance" agendas linked to federal education mandates and "initiatives" were of great concern because they challenged the central role of parents in nurturing and raising children. I wrote several articles warning parents of the damages children and family life suffer from the agenda to lengthen school calendars (here, here, here, and here).

The American Academy of Pediatrics released a report in 2007 warning parents of the relationship between increased depression and anxiety in children and the lack of the simple childhood pleasure of play. The report states that "the national trend, to focus on the academic fundamentals... has decreased time left for recess, creative arts, and physical education" at school and has "further diminished the child-driven play that is essential to the cognitive, physical, social, and emotional well-being of children and youth" that happens at home. Compound that with extended hours in after-school programs that emphasize academics, the hours of unsupervised video gaming and constant T.V. and you have a recipe for a nation that cannot create, work, or think.

It is not surprising, but no less disappointing, when I hear mothers complain that the precious little time they have with their children at home is further diminished by these national policies. It saddens me to hear so many parents complaining about stressed out kids who have no time to play and who feel their children are loosing their childhood to the ill conceived notions of "educational rigor". Like states across the country, my own county in Maryland has steadily increased school hours (primarily in elementary school) and they are even sending buses out earlier to make sure kids get to school for breakfast. A friend of mine complained that when she tries to make sure her kids are fed breakfast before they leave for school they say, "Oh mom, they feed us at school." She resents the loss of this family time and she should. Schools are encroaching on the role of parents to nurture and care for their young children to the great determent of the bonds between parent and child.

When your school board proposes an increases in the length of the school day and says they have to do it for "instructional" purposes be VERY suspicious! Even the Colorado story admits that this increased time will not be used for "typical course work" but for is an "extra 300 hours a year for things that usually don't fit in a regular school day, such as using personalized software or learning about world cultures, healthy living and even scrapbooking." After supporting the increased time for educational reasons, parents in Nebraska were surprised to find out that the 30 minutes added to the elementary day and 15 minutes added to middle school day was not used for instruction time but even if it were, the truth is that very young children tune out after about 2 o'clock and any instructional time after that is a complete waste.

When the School Board says they have "no choice" but to increase the school day and year because of state and federal mandates remember that in most states local school boards have constitutional powers over these choices. When the education "experts" tell you your kids need more "instructional time" for them to meet the new "rigorous" standards at school remember that though the school days and years have continually increased over the past four decades scores have remained flat.

If that doesn't convince you that these policies are wasteful and damaging to children and their families, if you are like many parents today who welcome these changes because it makes your work schedule easier, is lighter on the daycare pocketbook, or you simply believe this extra time is benefiting their child's learning. I would encourage you to read about the importance of unstructured free play and the detrimental effects of hyper-schooling on the developing mind and character of your child, you may conclude that the extra money for daycare (where at least they can run and play) is well worth it.

Arne Duncan's vision for a school centered culture rather than a family centered one is quickly becoming a reality and unless that is the world you want for your kids and grand-kids it is time for you to oppose these policies and persuade your friends that these changes are seriously harmful to their children. There really is "No Place Like Home" and there is no adequate substitute in a child's development for the nurture of a parent and the freedom of play.