Do we really need to change the school calendar?

To the Editor,

Wallingford-Swarthmore School District recently announced a few proposed changes to the 2021-22 school calendar that I think should be highlighted because of their consequences for our community. 

First, the school board is proposing that the school year start before Labor Day. Their primary stated reasons are to allow the last day of school to be earlier in June (which seems like a matter of preference rather than having any pedagogical value), and to allow for an extra week of instruction before Advanced Placement tests are administered in May. While I appreciate the desire to give our students every advantage, our district is already quite competitive in AP test scores and college acceptance rates. I’m interested to know whether teachers believe we need to add this extra week.

I think we also need to weigh the value of this proposed schedule change against the costs it carries. Given the current rate of vaccine administration, many families in our community will probably not be vaccinated until well into the summer. That means August may be the first time they are able to travel and see extended family. If so, the last week of August will be a prime week for it. COVID-19 has already separated us from loved ones in so many ways. We should preserve our best chance to be with them again without putting families in a position to have to choose between seeing loved ones and attending school.

The second change that concerns me is the proposal to make Election Day a so-called “asynchronous day” instead of a simple day off school. The idea behind this proposal is that it would avoid having the last student day in June be a Monday, which I understand. But another way to accomplish this would be to make Election Day a day off and make December 23 a school day. I would prefer this, because it would allow parents — especially parents of young children — greater flexibility on Election Day to go vote.

Making Election Day an asynchronous day would put a burden on parents, caregivers, and students, on a day when I think they should be free to participate in the election process. Making it a day off would enable parents to bring students to polling places without being concerned about how long they will need to wait in line, and whether they are taking time away that their child needs to complete work. A day off on Election Day, coupled with an added school day on December 23, would remove the conflict between our obligations to our children’s educations and our civic duty to vote (which I think this year has taught us is absolutely crucial). 

For all these reasons, I urge the board to poll teachers and parents on both of these changes before making their decision on January 25. 

I also urge families to contact the school board and make your preferences known, so that our representatives on the board can make a more informed decision. You can find the board’s contact information at wssd.org. 

Thank you,

Kathleen Raffaele
Swarthmore