Melvin B. Miller
Editor & Publisher

Longer days —
A strategy for excellence

Many educators from across the country now concur that extended school days and a longer school year are essential elements of a more effective public school curriculum. One of the plan’s strongest advocates in this state is philanthropist Chris Gabrieli, founder of Massachusetts 2020, a nonprofit organization promoting more classroom work in schools.

The length of the school day was established at a time when families expected their children to work. After a morning in class, children would head to the mills or the fields where they would toil until evening to help support their families. Now children are dismissed from school to the life of the streets.

The experience of charter schools has established that children have to be immersed in a more demanding academic environment if they are to become competitive in the technologically oriented world of work. This is especially true of children from lower-income communities. For example, Roxbury Preparatory Charter School has consistently produced students comparable to the best in the state.

With the evidence so compelling, one would think that it would be relatively easy to begin early education for 3- and 4-year-olds and extended day programs for public school students as standard practice. However, the substantial increase in education costs has retarded the implementation of these vital improvements.

Reports estimate that lengthening the school day will add about $1,300 to the annual cost of educating a student in Massachusetts. Gov. Deval Patrick has allocated $16.5 million in his budget for extended days. That will provide longer school days for only about 5,000 public school students, hardly enough to meet the demand.

In planning for public school reform, educators should be attentive to the opportunities available to affluent families. There are a number of pre-schools for the early education of children whose parents can afford the fees. Private secondary schools offer a quality education program that runs into the late afternoon. The tuition paid by parents is usually twice or more the cost of public education.

Equality of opportunity in America cannot be attained if the level of academic achievement needed to succeed can only be acquired in high-priced private academies. It must be readily accessible in public schools as well.

The absence of trust

The level of civility in Boston’s black community has sunk to an all-time low when a shooter has such contempt for public safety that he will fire a gun on a crowded bus. That he is willing to commit such an act in the early afternoon near a crowded intersection indicates a reckless disregard for his own apprehension.

The very nature of this incident should inform uninitiated suburbanites about the character of those whom law-abiding citizens are expected to confront. It is highly offensive to hear outsiders glibly assert that community residents must step up and cooperate with the police. To come forward as a witness is tantamount to signing one’s death warrant.

The fundamental problem is that the people, for good reason, do not trust the police. Police Commissioner Edward Davis has not been on the job long enough to be responsible for this loss of confidence, but his predecessor, Kathleen O’Toole, was certainly not effective in resolving the problem.

A solid bond between the community and the police will greatly reduce the opportunity for miscreants to commit crimes anonymously. The development of that bond is the first step in establishing solid police work.

“I know you learn more with these longer days, but it sure tires you out.”