Year-round schools have been suggested as a solution to a number of problems for public education, and the program has been implemented in a large number of school districts in the nation to good effect. Many people oppose the concept, however, often because they have been habituated to the existing system or because they see the change as threatening in some way. The benefits outweigh the objections that have been raised, however, and the approach can be used as a way of reducing costs, improving the educational experience, reducing overcrowding, and conserving space and other resources.
A number of schools in the nation have started operating on a year-round basis. In 1991 the National Association for Year-Round Education estimated that 736,000 students in 859 public and 13 private schools were attending year-round schools, and this was a 40 percent increase over the previous year's figures. Generally, the year-round school was seen as a way of making more efficient use of space and resources. It had also been adopted as a way of coping with overcrowding. Los Angeles shifted to year-round schooling in order to save space, and by staggering schedules among four separate "tracks," the schools could keep a fourth of the students on vacation at any one time and therefore increase capacity. Another reason that has bene offered is educational rather than economic. Buena Vista, Virginia, adopted the system in order to improve curriculum offerings, cut spending on remedial work, attract better teachers, and keep its young people occupied. Year-round schooling makes it possible to run more activities without adding staff members (Fiske, 1991, 96-98).
One objection that has been raised is that the year-round school approach is costly and thus does not save money:
For all the advantages, however, converting to year-round schooling can be difficult and expensive. To endure the summer heat, many schools must install air cond...