Though some have argued in favor of lengthening school days to boost student achievement particularly in inner-city schools affected by poverty, a new survey from the All Stars Project indicates most Americans don’t support this.

According to the survey, 76 percent of Americans “do not support the extension of the school year and school day, despite the policies currently in place in dozens of cities across the nation.”

The All Stars Project said it commissioned to have this poll conducted to find out the opinion of ordinary Americans when considering how to best benefit inner-city youth.

The survey was conducted this past September online to a sample of over 2,000 U.S. adults.

It revealed that while most Americans do not support longer school days, they do support focusing on life skills (communication, teamwork, social/emotional skills) and experience in the work place through after school jobs; about 3 in 4 Americans support focusing on life skills while 2 in 3 support after school work experience.

The All Star Project’s CEO, Gabrielle Kurlander, believes the survey results have indicated a need for an increased focus on improving after school programs to better serve and develop in-need youth.

"The majority of Americans realize that there needs to be a fundamental shift away from remedial approaches to afterschool, to a focus on development, which includes exposing youth to people, places and things beyond what they experience in ordinary life...Let's not keep repeating what has failed in school, in afterschool. We must redefine what afterschool is and what constitutes success.” Ms. Kurlander said in a company statement.

Read more about All Stars Project here.

Article by Nicole Gorman, Education World Contributor

11/18/2015