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14 - PORT PERRY STAR - Wednesday, July 3, 1991 "Scugog's Community Newspaper of Choice" By Scott Anderson Durham Region Board of Ed- ucation's idea of implementing year-round schooling has met with mixed reactions and even those in favor of the proposal have reservations. On one side of the fence are the students who, for the most part, are against the idea, while the educators on the other hand, see possible merit in the idea. Durham Board of Education recently announced the idea of year-round schooling in place of the current September to June program, with a two month summer break. Under the new system the student body will be split into three groups, with one group being off at any given time. The students will still attend school the mandatory 185 days a year, but will attend school for 12 weeks followed by a two-week break. Stan Todd, principal at R. H. Cornish Public School, is one such person in favor of the idea. Mr. Todd believes that with the year-round schooling the num- bers in the classrooms at any one time will decrease. This would minimize the need for ex- tra portables at the school or additional buildings to be add- ed. Currently there are eight such units in use at the school. Taking away the need for more schools to be constructed would save "a significant amount of money." But he does state that if the schools were to be used in the summer months, there would be a need for an upgrading in the infrastructure at the schools such as air condition- ing. Although in favor of the idea, Mr. Todd anticipates rough times ahead. "I see all kinds of Mixed reactions on year-round schooling | challenges before it could ever work within a school." One of the biggest challenges will be the logistics of tracking the students. He says with a fraction of the students on vaca- tion at any given time it will be difficult for the teachers to track the development of them and the various stages of devel- opment they have attained. A Stan Todd Far more than the curricu- lum will be affected, Mr. Todd says. The relationship of the student and the teacher will also suffer due to the different schedules of the teacher and student. He fears a good rap- port will not be developed be- tween the two. "Mr. Todd also questions how he will communicate with his staff on both day-to-day mat- ters, as well as important de- tails, when up to one-third of the teaching staffis away. "I sincerely think there are answers and we can work out these challenges, but it needs a lot of thought," Mr. Todd says. shank, an academic research teacher at R. H. Cornish, says many of her colleagues are look- ing at the issue in "a positive light." Mrs. Nottage-Cruickshank sees benefits in the system as most teachers will not need to review as much at the begin- ning of the school year. She says the breaks in between holi- days will be shorter, enabling the students to retain more. But she says the teachers will have to adapt a fair amount to the sytem and make adjust- ments to their curriculums. It is the community itself that will feel the most impact from the change. This is per- haps the biggest issue. Teach- ers and parents expressed con- cern over the juggling of holidays and daycare. Under the old system parents knew when the holidays were for their children and were able to plan accordingly. Now that the scheduling will be changed some families will be forced to alter their arrangements. The same holds true for fami- ly holidays, parents claim. With children spread out across the Region, some attending dif- ferent schools, they question how they will be able to co- ordinate both their children's holiday, as well as getting the time off from their own jobs. "It will have an effect on a great many people," Mr. Todd says. "It's not just an education- alissue." Mr. Todd says it is an issue whose time has come and is growing, and therefore cau- tions that it is not something that should be rushed into. He agrees with the Board's idea of introducing it as a pilot project into one or two schools and studying the results before it is Students have a different and somewhat negative view of the idea and for the most part don't want to see the change oc-\ curring. Drew Shepherd, a grade 11 student at Port Perry High School, opposes the idea and is in favor of keeping the old sys- tem of two months off in the summer. "It's good to have a break," he says. Jackie McKinlay, also a stu- dent at Port Perry High School, is also against the new idea of going to school for 12 weeks then taking a two-week break. "I'd rather get it over with all at once." Other students were more philosophical about the situa- tion. Jeremy Williams for ex- ample, sees logistical problems in the system. The high school student believes that should the new system be introduced, students will drop out rather than acceptit. He also believes that families will find it difficult adapting. He says families like to go away together during the summer months, under the new system he believes there won't be as many opportunities to do so. Mike Pothier, another Port Perry High School student, ex- pressed concern about part- time employment should the idea become a reality. He says not only would it be tougher getting a job for two or three weeks, he says he wouldn't want to give up the little free time he has to work. "I wouldn't want to work that much if I only got two weeks off. I'd want to spend it fooling around," he says. Not all Lou are against theidea however. Jay Mackie, a grade 8 student at R. H. Cor- nish says it is a good idea and breaks over the course of the year. He says under the present system he forgets a lot of the work over the summer. He sees many benefits with the new system. As an avid sportsman and a keen partici- pant in extra-curricular activi- ties he believes he will have far more time to concentrate on honing his skills on the basket- ball and volleyball courts under the year-round system. He be- lieves more students will get in- volved in the extra-curricular activities, keeping them off the streets and out of trouble. "When you're in school, you're far less likely to get into trouble." The Board is expected to make a decision in the fall as to which schools will be selected as the pilot schools. 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