Say Goodbye To Summer School

As spending cuts increase, the education system is stripped of some of it's luxuries. In elementary school, my generation took for granted what we had. For example, the opportunity to join the band at a young age or summer school for underachieving students. Times have been rough for too long and the frustrations are trickling down to the public education system in America. The most shocking cut from the budget has been summer school. Looking back on the concept of summer school, I give the politicians credit on the cut.

Summer school was a way for underachieving students to have a second chance so they could graduate with their class. For weeks, they'd sit in classrooms hotter than heck just trying to obtain that passing grade. Some students needed the extra help and others were just simply too lazy to hand in their work the first time. Little did I realize that summer school was as expensive as it was. I spent lots of time digging through the internet, and I didn't get an exact number of dollars summer school would save the districts. But when dissecting it, money would be saved in the teacher salaries, utilities, janitor salaries, and gas for the buses (and we all know gas prices are on the rise).

The first reaction to cutting summer school would be sympathy for the struggling students who really do need extra help. However, I truly believe this is a smart cut. It's a smarter cut than taking away band or sports from the students. As a student, you have 180 days to pass your class. Let's be honest, passing high school classes isn't exactly hard. If you haven't passed high school the first time, you probably didn't give it your all. If you did, than an extra 180 days of relearning the material would really benefit you. Cramming a whole year into less than a month isn't realistic. Therefore, teachers are forced to water down the subject to match the audience they're teaching. Is that really fair for the students that took the tough version the first time? Staying back affects one person, but a school's 20 million dollar deficit affects all the students. 

Lastly, spending cuts in the education system really couldn't go anywhere else. Students need to be held accountable and study the information presented to them. The education system is broke and teachers must get paid. Being a teacher is one of the most important jobs in society, and to cut their salaries would be an injustice to them. Keep appreciating the teachers and hold the students accountable! Staying a year back isn't the worst thing in the world, but losing our teachers are. Good job politicians, that's one decision you got right.