| Abstract: | Educational reform for elementary and secondary schools has become a major industry in the past three years. At the national and state levels, commissions and legislatures have begun to act (e.g., National Commission on Excellence in Education 1983; Task Force on Education for Economic Growth 1983; Griesemer and Butler 1983; U.S. Department of Education 1984). One central recommendation of these reports is to adopt longer school days and longer school years. The most publicized of the reports, "A Nation at Risk," called for seven-hour school days in place of the present five to six hours, and 200-to-220-day school years in place of the typical 180 days at present (National Commission on Excellence in Education 1983, 29). In response, some states have increased already both daily and annual school sessions (U.S. Department of Education 1984). For example, California appropriated $257 billion in 1984 to increase the amount of instruction by about 5 percent. |
