Teachers’ Take on Modified School Calendars
By Daly, Jo Ann
Teachers’ Take on Modified School Calendars Year-Round Education: Change and Choice for Schools and Teachers by Shelly Gismondi Haser and Ilham Nasser. Lanham, MD: Scarecrow Education. 2005.148 pages. ISBN 1-57886-235-3.
A great deal of the research on year-round or modified school calendars focuses on student achievement and performance outcomes. Year-Round Education, however, focuses on this topic from a unique perspective-the teachers. Information contained in this book stems from an in-depth case study that focused on the effects and benefits of a modified school-year schedule on this other essential school population.
Haser and Nasser conducted their research in Fairfax County Public Schools, a suburban school district in northern Virginia. Their investigation focused on how a year-round school calendar impacted teachers’ motivation and the quality of their professional life. Using the case study approach, the authors interviewed classroom teachers, current and past administrators, and specialists in three Title I elementary schools during a two-year period. Concurrently, the authors observed classroom and school activities.
In the book’s five parts, the authors carefully describe their research focus, discuss research processes and findings from each of the schools studied, and conclude with an action plan for schools considering a switch to a modified year-round school calendar. Several appendixes supply readers with lists of year-round schools in the United States and Canada, interview questions used in the study, and a sample of one school’s intersession informational brochure.
The researchers document what the teachers felt were the benefits of a modified school calendar. These include an increased sense of empowerment, reduced professional stress, more professional options, and less burnout.
The transitional process for each of the schools is documented. The individual case studies provide insight into the roles educational administrators have in facilitating the modified- calendar school transition. Reflections and lessons learned by each of the schools are throughly discussed and interpreted. A section on the role that universities can play in helping schools smoothly transition to a modified calendar also is included. Well-planned and executed intersession programs are a vital part of the modified year. University faculty members and students can help develop these programs.
Year-Round Education is a new, insightful look at modified- calendar schools. It is a must read for all stakeholders who are considering the switch from a traditional school-year calendar. Educational leaders will gain insights on teachers’ perspectives of the change and process and the effects the school calendar has on professional outlook.
Jo Ann Daly is an Associate Professor of Education at Marymount University in Arlington, Virginia. Her research interests include university and school system professional development partnerships, literacy acquisition, and the integration of technology in the process of learning to read.
Copyright Kappa Delta Pi Winter 2006