ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1996, Roanoke Times
DATE: Tuesday, August 13, 1996 TAG: 9608130053
SECTION: EDITORIAL PAGE: A-4 EDITION: METRO
SUMMER vacation ended early for dozens of elementary schoolchildren in Danville last week, and - surprise, surprise - the kids and their parents couldn't be happier.
Their reaction was a surprise, at least to Danville school officials. They had not expected so positive a response to their first experiment in year-round school. Participation is optional, but only about 3 percent of the 550 pupils (or their parents) at Schoolfield Elementary chose against it. More than 30 pupils from other schools transferred into Schoolfield because they want the advantage of the extended-year learning concept.
But why should anyone be surprised? Schoolfield kids, like their counterparts almost everywhere, suffer the August doldrums. Enough already with video games and mind-numbing TV shows. Having been at loose ends since June, they're ready to get back to school (even if many would never admit it.)
And it should come as no great revelation that Danville parents, like parents elsewhere, want improved education for their children and higher performance from taxpayer-supported schools. Aware that such results are being achieved in more than 2,200 schools in other states with some type of extended-year school program, Virginia parents are increasingly recognizing the virtues of the concept.
Thus far, year-round schools have gotten a good tryout in only one school district of the commonwealth - in tiny Buena Vista. Its program, begun in 1973, helped spark interest at other U.S. schools.
Nearly all report a similar experience. Student test scores have improved. Dropout rates have declined. More students are going on to college.
Those are reasons enough for more Virginia schools to get on the bandwagon, but there are additional advantages. The concept provides more efficient use of school buildings, which represent a multimillion-dollar capital investment by taxpayers. It also offers a more continuous, safe environment for children, especially latchkey kids from homes where both parents or a single parent work.
If such positive outcomes don't arise from Danville's pilot program, we'll be surprised.
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