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Page updated August 15, 2001

The Whetstone Report
August 9, 2001 

The following  report is an excellent  model  for grassroots groups to use as a guide in framing their own arguments in support of the traditional school calendar and in opposition to school calendar reform fads. It contains some of the latest research available and covers many bases in the argument against school calendar change.

While this report focuses on problems of the year-round calendar for high schools, much of  the research, academic reviews and other data cited relates as well to the detriments of a reconfigured school year  for elementary  and middle school students. Health and safety concerns raised in this report should be of particular concern to parents or anyone who would be forced to work in a hot school building in the summer. (See 5.7 Negative Environmental Effects on Learning)

The authors of  this powerful report were part of a loose knit group in a Columbus, Ohio, suburb  that met in May over their common concern that  primarily advocacy  information  had been provided in a presentation recommending Whetstone High School  convert to a year-round scheule. The report was presented by  to the school superintendent on August 9, 2001.

Maintaining the Conventional School Calendar at WHS ----

A Research Effort by a Citizens Group

  Issue 1.0 August  9^th, 2001.

Coordinating Editors:  Brian Brown  and Joan Frederick

Contributors, Authors, Reviewers, and Researchers

Brian Brown
Joan Frederick
Jane Leemhuis
Becky Brown
Debbie Britton
Steve Britton

Executive Summary
The arguments for and against year round school comes from all walks of life, none more telling, though, than that from the President of the National Education Association. NEA President Bob Chase in his column on the NEA web site entitle "The Summer Parent" who supports the idea that kids need to be kids:

For summer to be intellectually stimulating, it need not be, and indeed must not be, regimented.  It is a child's right to be a child, and to enjoy the pleasures of a childhood summer.  That can't happen if every hour of your child's day is scheduled. While no one wants his or her child slumped in front of the TV for hours on end, neither do you want to make it a summer of stress.  

For the authors, that quote comes at no more an appropriate time than during the current debate on implementing year-round school at Whetstone High School.  Most of us began this journey with that exact sentiment and the disruption we see by year-round school.  We then set out to discover for ourselves if what the WHS administrators said had basis in fact.  

What we found out was that it had little basis in fact and in our view it was another education gimmick.  Herein this document are a number of Research Results that support our contention that there is no valid reason to move WHS, or any other Columbus Public School for that matter, away from the conventional calendar.  While some within the group have differing approaches, we all are headed in the common direction to keeping WHS on the conventional calendar.

In summary our major research results, supported by well-known experts, show that :

The report also covers local and national year round school efforts and discusses how many schools have tried but come back to the conventional calendar.  In conclusion:

1. We urge CPS officials to stop all efforts to convert WHS to a year round school.

2. To include some of us on your feasibility study panel.

3. Include us in other group efforts where identified problems need workable cost-effective solutions with less radical impact and broad community support.
               

1.   Introduction

  It has been proposed that Whetstone High School move from the conventional school calendar year to an alternative calendar school year format beginning in the 2002-03 school year.  Summer vacation, as most know it, would be a thing of the past.

The initiators of this proposal submit they have investigated the concept and cite numerous advantages over the current conventional calendar. These proponents have embarked down the road toward implementation by taking votes of the school staff and student body. Additionally they have held, and scheduled, public presentations with certain parent and community interest groups seeking support for their proposal.

Many parents and community members remained unconvinced, citing many unanswered questions, and finding that a large body of information and evidence exist which runs counter to the proponents alleged advantages of an alternative calendar.

The authors of this report view this year-round school (YRS) proposal as a radical alteration of the current conventional calendar.    The same authors and others became alarmed at the speed at which this "exploration" was heading toward implementation, despite a lack of community understanding of the issue and a true consensus. 

As a result, several members of the community formed a loosely structured group to investigate both the concept and the WHS Exploratory Committee process. The intent was to provide balanced information to the community at large, to invite active involvement in the public discussion of this issue and to stop the implementation at WHS if the investigation yielded no positive data. This report is a result of that search.  While it does not cover all issues, it attempts to cover major issues and research results about YRS and its impact on Whetstone and other schools in general.

In July 2001, Dr. Gene Harris, the new superintendent of Columbus Public Schools, halted further public presentations by the proponents, until a feasibility study, at her direction could be conducted.  

1.1.  History of Year-round Schools

Year-round schooling has a long history in the United States, dating back to the 1800s, when it was used sporadically in northern industrial cities in an attempt to address the English language instruction needs of the children of immigrants.

By the turn of the century, it was being embraced as an answer for many of the same problems that plague schools today: overcrowding, funding shortages and improving the education process.

But the year-round school movement also has a long history of failure. Research on the year-round calendar by The National Education Association in a report released in 1958 found that every school system that had attempted a 12-month calendar up to that point eventually abandoned it. The reasons communities dumped it back then are the same reasons they dump year-round school today: Year-round schooling is disruptive to family life, provides little or no academic benefit and saves schools little or no money--and can even cost much more.

The revival of the year-round school movement in the late 1960s is a result of several dynamics at work in the post-World War II era. The baby boom sparked a demand for more school construction; meanwhile, the space race with Russia fueled yet another debate about the quality of American education.  Around the same time, state, county and local governments were wrestling with ways to pay for the new school construction demands of rapidly growing suburban communities.

The national media reports about the use of a year-round calendar to relieve overcrowding in the suburbs of Valley View School District 96, near Chicago, sparked a wave of interest in the year-round school concept in the early 1970s.  The Valley View School District, which includes Romeoville and Bolingbrook, grew from 89 students to nearly 5,000 in 15 years and was the first in the country to place the entire school district on a rotating school calendar (multi-track).

The media attention given Valley View resulted in consulting jobs in other school districts for Kenneth L. Hermansen, the school superintendent and his assistant school superintendent, James Gove. They would be instrumental in the formation of the National Council on Year-Round Education, forerunner organization of the National Association FOR Year-Round Education, the advocacy group that markets the year-round school concept to school districts today.

There were other pilot programs under way in other areas of the county at that same time, prompted in some cases by demands of businesses for more skilled workers to run industrial equipment. This equipment made it increasingly more difficult to rely on unskilled laborers to fill in for workers who took vacations during summer when their children were out of school and the weather was nice.  

In summary, YRS is not a new idea and after 100 years of experimenting, there still is no proof of its benefits --academic or financial--and there is growing evidence that sending kids to school in the heat of summer may actually deter learning.   (Source for the History:  Billee Bussard, Author SummerMatters.com and Lessons Learned the Hard Way.)

2.   Year-Round School - The Big Picture

     2.1.      Definitions and Types Of Year-Round School

YRS has the benefit of name to be inferred as a positive program since most people infer from the name that school will be taught every day of the year and more of anything in our society is presumed to be better. In fact this is not true, and in most cases discovering this single fact opens the inquiries as to what exactly is YRS.

YRS is known by many names.  It is Year-round School, Alternative Calendar, Extended School Year, Modified School Year, Continuous Learning Calendar, Education For All Seasons, the Balanced Calendar, Flexible Scheduling, and the Remedial Calendar. All of these are terms used to describe what essentially is a year-round school calendar.   In most cases, the YRS calendar adds no more days; rather it shuffles the current 180-day schedule so that students have 9-week sessions followed by three-week breaks; it shortens the summer vacation to 5 weeks. 

2.2.      NAYRE

National Association for Year-Round Education (NAYRE) is a non-profit organization founded in part by Dr. Charles Ballinger, and is based out of San Diego, California. This group openly submits they are a national advocacy group for year-round education and a clearinghouse for information supporting year-round education. They promote and sell reports, studies, and information supporting the YRS concept. They also provide for fee services that link prospective year-round districts and schools with consultants who can guide them in exploration and implementation of YRS. Some of the consultants are school administrators who have first hand experience implementing YRS. For instance, Mildred Sexton, Principal, Spratley Middle School, Danville Virginia is listed on the NAYRE website as a paid consultant. (See http://www.nayre.org/consulting.html) NAYRE also holds an annual convention to promote the YRS cause and to provide a path to market for vendors of various services and products, some of which are entertainment and amusement parks. (See http://www.nayre.org/conference.html#directory).

It is interesting to note that the 2002 convention to be held in San Diego February 9 - 13, 2002 is not an expected intercession period.

2.3.   The Current Educational Environment 
    at WHS and CPS   

Contrary to what the proponents of YRS at Whetstone say, the current educational environment at the school does not warrant such a radical change as YRS.   While Columbus Public Schools continues to labor under the dark cloud of academic emergency, Whetstone High School has thrived under two recent district initiatives. First, the return to community schools, which has re-engaged a vibrant surrounding community and returned significant numbers of community families from the private schooling sector. Second, Open Enrollment has insured social, economic, and cultural diversity of the student body which is so critical to the educational experience.  The result of these changes contributed to more WHS seniors passing the 12th grade proficiency than students at either CAHS or Fort Hayes. The WHS newsletter reveals page after page of honor roll students.

Today WHS has just over 1000 students when a few short years ago enrollment was a bit over 500 and it was on the list of schools to be closed.  Just recently a Dispatch article noted that Whetstone's graduation rate was one of the top four in the District. 

2.4.  Balanced Calendar Initiative 
   At Whetstone High School

Whetstone Exploratory Committee lead by Mr. James "Skip" Thomas, principal of WHS, initiated an investigation into the YRS concept and possible implementation at WHS as a result of issues discussed in the CPS Reform Panel. Mr. Thomas is a member of that panel. The committee consists of WHS administrative staff, teachers, and two people serving as parent members. WHS administration quietly explored the YRS option and discussed briefly with PTA representatives and school staff, but neglected to mention to incoming freshman that the concept was being considered.  All families were given a one-week notice for the first public meeting, which occurred after open enrollment closed.  At the June 11^th community meeting, Mr. Thomas confirmed that the committee had also investigated additional programs to enhance academics.  They included 3-block, 4x4, AB Block and Trimesters.  However, no details were provided about the results of the administrations studies. 

Of particular interest is how incongruent the WHS administration's position appears.  The WHS administration touts the success of WHS in newsletters, on the web, at academic awards banquets, sports banquets, music concerts and are nearly silent about YRS proposal. Then, within days of one of those events, it was announced that YRS may be implemented at WHS and that things are worse at WHS than we were lead to believe and that YRS is the only solution.

2.5.   The Balance Calendar Proposal

The committee presented the year-round school idea to parents as the "Balanced Calendar".  The term "Modified Calendar" was also used.   More specifically it is a 45-15 calendar, within a single-track attendance system. Between each quarter would be a three-week "intersession" period. During the first two weeks of each intersession period classes would be held for remediation and enrichment, and the last week as a vacation week for all students and teachers. The school year would begin about the third week of July and end about the first week of June.   In some form the winter and spring break would continue to exist, but summer vacation, as the vast majority knows it, would be lost.  The earliest YRS could be implemented at WHS was planned to be during the 2002-2003 school year. A decision for that school year was needed by December 2001, according to the WHS administrators

All students attending Whetstone would be moved to this new calendar, including the handicapped and special needs students. Students would still be required to attend the same number of school days (180). Attendance at intersessions would not be mandatory, but some students might be encouraged to attend for remediation or enrichment.

Funding and costs for this calendar have not been determined and students might be charged a fee for attending intersessions. Principal James Thomas has been quoted in the media that as many as one hundred and fifty (150) students might attend intersessions.

2.5.1.      The Proposed Benefits

  The committee reports a host of YRS benefits on the Whetstone High School web site. On their FAQ page are the responses to the question of "What are the actual benefits of a balanced calendar?".  They state that a balanced calendar reduces summer learning loss, and it eliminates the need to "re-teach" as much material each fall. They claim that the intersessions built into a balanced calendar provide opportunities for more immediate academic intervention for students in need, as well as allowing time for enrichment opportunities for students who don't need remediation. It is also claimed that because the school year includes several breaks, attendance among students and teachers is better than with a traditional calendar. Furthermore, the proponents say that students and staff return from intersessions refreshed and enthusiastic. There are fewer serious discipline referrals, less student vandalism, and a lower dropout rate -- improvements, which benefit all students as well as the community at large. The intersessions allow teachers and students an opportunity to start each nine weeks refreshed and focused.

2.6.   The Grass Roots Citizens' Effort

A loosely organized group of local parents and community members, began in May 2001, mounted their own investigation and research effort. Their findings convinced them the interests of the students, parents, district, and community were best served by remaining on the conventional calendar, and they have organized an informational campaign and petition drive to support remaining on the conventional calendar.  In response to the Exploratory Committee's FAQ,  this group has come up with its own FAQ entitled, We Say - They Claim.  It is include in the appendix. The group is called WhetstonePays, People Against Year Round School.  While there are differences in the group about how motives and how to fight the year-round school effort, we all are committed to maintaining the current calendar, and perhaps stopping other communities from having to fight this same misguided effort.

3.   Year-Round Schools Locally

Locally, the lists of schools that have considered year-round schools far out number those that have implemented it.   Although the authors have not talked with all local school districts, our research shows that Second Avenue is the only school in the Central Ohio Area that has implemented year-round schools.  The list of area schools that have considered but rejected the idea include Hilliard Schools, Olentangy Schools, Westerville City Schools, Upper Arlington Schools, Pickerington Schools, Southwest City Schools and the Franklin County Board of Mental Retardation and Developmental Disabilities (MRDD).

3.1. Second Avenue

This is the only area school known to be on a year-round school format.   In the school's proposal for Alternative Calendar School, date Dec. 17^th, 1998, the report authors site that they were not satisfied with academic performance, and were troubled by summer learning loss, high student absenteeism among other concerns.   They generalize about research supporting their claims, but provide no documented sources in their report.  The report says 98% of the parents surveyed responded favorably, but it lacks any real numerical data as to how many that 98% represents.  The plan also lacks how the school is going to measure success of the program.  For instance, did the school baseline its pre-year-round school population so that an apples to apples comparison can be made?  Do the researchers know how to factor out the affects of having teachers develop new teaching plans from the impact the calendar change has?  All of these questions and more need to be addressed going in so that an accurate measure can be made at appropriate intervals. Costs for the school's conversion are listed to increase with more salary for the secretary and principal.   Estimates of roughly $70,000 are provided for that salary plus a full time position to develop and maintain the program, for additional transportation cost and for food service costs.   Intersession costs are not included in this report. Electric service and air-conditioning estimates "ranged from $500,000 upwards

3.2. Hilliard Schools    

Hilliard Schools considered year-round schools in August of 1996 with the formation of a study group that reported back in April of 1997.   The Executive Summary of the study group's report is found as an Appendix in this report.   While not endorsing the single-track year-round school option, the report ruled out completely the Multi-track year-round school option.  Concerning the single track option, the group recommend its consideration if:

1.      Determination of public interest through surveys. 

2.      Selection of one or more schools for comparative cost analysis.

3.      Determination that this calendar will better serve a significant portion of the community, including the student population; and

4.      Selected through parental choice only.  

The report noted that Community involvement was a high priority during the study. This was encouraged in a variety of ways including flyers sent home with students, invitations to middle and high school students to participate in discussions and meetings; use of local newspapers and involvement of local government, community agencies and area businesses. Several sub-committees were formed to gather information and input from all affected areas.

Most authors of this report note that this was one of the most open and inclusive local and national investigations that we have seen.   The school board even sponsored a visit by a conventional calendar advocate, Dr. James Engelman a superintendent in Hunt, Texas and President of the Traditional Learning for Children Association.

3.3. Olentangy Schools and Gahanna-Jefferson

In 1994, two other area schools looked at year-round schooling.  The Olentangy School district considered year-round school as a solution to "its burgeoning school population," says the 6/11/1994 edition of the Delaware Gazette.  Superintendent Keith Richards was quoted as saying that "Our feeling was it is not as educationally sound as we want (it) to be."  Richards further noted that year-round school is letting the facilities dictate the program and not the program dictate the facilities.  The Gazette article also mention that YRS was being considered at Gahanna-Jefferson, although few references to this effort have been found and local school officials say the system has no year-round  school today. 

3.4. Westerville City Schools

The May 23^rd, 1994 edition of the Columbus Dispatch reports that Westerville school system will not initiate YRS on a large scale, but "would consider it as a component in an overall plan to alleviate crowding issues."   There are no Westerville schools on the NAYRE list.   In the Westerville effort, 12,000 surveys were sent to parents and nearly 2400 were returned.   No numbers are given as to how the vote fared.  The report also noted that the multi-track option would offer substantial savings, that students in the same family should be allowed to remain on the same track and that volunteers would be used in a pilot program. 

3.5. Worthington Schools  

Worthington School District Considered year-round school in the form of what was termed a Continuous Learning Calendar.  But on May 4^th, 1999, the Worthington Schools issued a press release noting that "Based upon feedback from the community and discussion with individual Board members, it has become evident that there is little support for further study of the Continuous Learning Calendar", said Superintendent Dr. Damon Asbury.  "To continue to plan a pilot CLC site would create unnecessary divisiveness in our community."   Asbury further said, "that the board and the administration did not hear any compelling evidence that a continuous learning calendar would significantly improve student achievement. "

3.6. Upper Arlington

Reports are scant, but Upper Arlington School district began considering YRS in Jan.1996, but there are none today. The Jan. 31 edition of the Upper Arlington News  said the school was looking at longer school days, longer school weeks, and longer school years and that a thorough investigation was to take place.

3.7. Pickerington

Pickerington Schools also looked at year-round school as an option in the late 80's, as a result of several levy failures and in an effort to find solutions for overcrowding:  Per their web site as found on August 5^th, 2000, "On 11/8/88, the 19.9-million bond issue for the new high school was again defeated by district voters. The board then began reviewing its options, including split sessions, increasing class sizes and year-round school."  Furthermore, the Pickerington School district also considered the option in 1979, 1990, 1993, and again in 1997 according to a May 5, 1997 story in the Pickerington This Week. We know of no year-round schools in the Pickerington district. 

3.8. Southwestern City Schools

A Westside This Week on article from May 8, 1997 notes that the SWCS schools were considering year-round school to deal with a increasing student population and no new levy money to build additional school buildings.  An earlier effort is also reported in the August 5^th, 1995  Grove City Southwest Messenger that had SWCS looking at YRS then.  In both instances, the YRS proposals never materialized and the system opted for other alternatives and eventually passed a levy.

3.9. Franklin County Board of Mental Retardation and Developmental Disabilities (MRDD)

In an April 21, 2000 report, the MRDD board decided that it would not move to a year-round school format.  In their report recommendation section, they say that "The instructional data collected did not support that such a change was necessary nor would it be of great benefit to our students. The reality is that it was not in the best interests of the staff, the majority of whom were non-supportive of this change."  A major find in the report concluded that there is "little or none (referring to YRS research) in relation to the needs of multi-handicapped students …" This report is included as an attachment. 

4.   Year-Round Schools Nationally 

2.1. Key State-By-State Facts  

Key states is defined as any state which has schools on a year-round calendar of any type that represents at least one-percent (1%) of NAYRE's published total of 2,939 schools in the fifty states and the District of Columbia for the 2000-2001 school year.

States are listed in descending order by the percentage of their number of year-round schools over the total number of year-round schools in the fifty states and the District of Columbia.

As of the 2000-2001 school year California has 1,550 of the 2,939 year-round schools nationwide, as illustrated in the graph below.

Of this total in California, only 40 are general high schools, and the vast majority are elementary schools. Their domination of the national numbers is due to the fact that California state law the requires districts to employ year-round school as a first line of defense for overcrowding. School districts that do not comply risk losing state education funds.  California also has a high English as a second language population, and some empirical data suggest students in the primary grades can benefit in learning the English language in a year-round school environment.

4.2. The Sluggish Growth Rate Of Year-Round Schools

After 100 years of experimenting, the YRS school movement has largely been limited to mostly fast growth states west of the Mississippi that were desperate for a solution to overcrowding.  The majority also have mild winters and multiple seasons conducive to outdoor activities. An analysis by Billee Bussard, editor, SummerMatters.com from data provided by the National Association For Year-Round Education and the North Carolina Department of Education includes the following observation and table: