LAUSD had been doing it, but I cannot find any current info on how many year-round schools in LAUSD there are. wiki says three in 2012-13.
First brought on by a lack of facilities and an unusual lack in the use of school facilities in Summer. Then, number of kids dropped and more schools were built, so schools went back to traditional.
More searching finds Corona-Norco (short for “North Corona”) has year-round.
I think logistics are the real hassle with year-round schools:
- Transfers in and out will have out-of-whack schedules.
- Families with kids in different schools (elem vs mid vs hs) will want to be on the same track.
- Extended families in different districts will want their vacations at the same time.
- Teacher couples in different schools/districts will want the same vacation time.
For an isolated community in the boonies struggling with not enough facilities and too many kids? Sure. 1000+ school district like LAUSD? No thanks.
This popped up in my searches:
Excerpt:
The proposal seemed simple: Change the length of winter vacation in Los Angeles public schools from three weeks to two. Students would have the same number of school days without losing so much learning momentum.
But the school board’s recent decision to alter winter break and all it affects — the rhythm of lives and coveted time off — has provoked outrage and legal action, and also highlighted the important question of when children should be in school, how effectively time is used and how much say parents and teachers should have over it.
The calendar debate is not limited to Los Angeles or to the length and timing of breaks. Educators in several states, including Michigan and Florida, have explored year-round calendars with shorter but strategically spread out breaks to maximize learning. And in L.A., parents are still complaining about the mid-August start time, when the weather is the hottest and many families want to extend summer activities and travel.
For some, the three-week winter pause has provided an opportunity to recharge and spend time with family. For others, the extra week brings on child-care hassles, potential learning loss and an extended period without pay for low-wage, hourly school workers.
Can’t please everyone.
Best solution might be alternating two weeks and three weeks each year with. See, everyone is equally unhappy!