President Barack Obama may not be as popular with school kids when they hear that he wants them to spend more time in the classroom.

President Barack Obama may not be as popular with school kids when they hear that he wants them to spend more time in the classroom.
 
According to the Associated Press, Obama wants to lengthen the regular school day by tacking on a few extra hours to each day. And he’d like to extend the school year overall by curtailing summer vacation.  He hopes the extra school time will help students in the U.S. keep up with kids across the globe.
 
"Now, I know longer school days and school years are not wildly popular ideas," president admitted. "Not with Malia and Sasha, not in my family, and probably not in yours. But the challenges of a new century demand more time in the classroom."
 
The president is also looking to have schools remain open on weekends to provide a safe haven for students.
 
But the president’s idea is getting support from Education Secretary Arne Duncan, who told the AP that school schedules need to be updated in order to match the lifestyle that U.S. citizens live today.
 
"Our school calendar is based upon the agrarian economy and not too many of our kids are working the fields today," he explained. "Young people in other countries are going to school 25, 30 percent longer than our students here. I want to just level the playing field."
 
Some states are already on board with the president, though, as they have extended class time, either by adding hours to their days or adding days to their year. Some institutions have even begun operating on a year-round schedule, but what they cut from summer vacation they add to other  school breaks, so it tends to balance out.

-- Sonya Eskridge

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