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Mitigating
Families' New Summer Schedules
Taken
from the Winter 2001 edition of the Zeitgeist Client Newsletter
As traditional summer hotspots across the country report lackluster
seasons, a disturbing trend is becoming clearer and clearer. It's not
the weather. And it's not the competition. And it's not our aging product
line.
It's the changing dynamic of the American family's summer...driven primarily
by the plethora of organized activities for our children and the drive
by local school boards to start classes earlier and earlier.
When many of us were kids, we'd play sandlot ball or hang at the pool
all  summer
long. Those were the choices.
Today, it's soccer leagues, swim teams, little league and dance camps...and
a hundred other activities all designed to keep our kids occupied as
they wait for school to re-open. And what do these activities have in
common? They all conclude on or about July 31st.
Where there once was a three month summer season, there is now a three
week window. Three weeks when the American family can enjoy its annual
birthright...the Summer Vacation. But, with every American family traveling
during those three weeks, the experience is incredibly cramped and there
is often no room at the inn.
That this changing dynamic is driven by societal shifts, there's little
to be done on the front end, save putting June and July on sale. Where
the pressure must be applied is on the starting date of local schools.
Oh, the school boards will cry that we're harming the children in the
name of profits and that they know best when to schedule the opening
of classes for the autumn term. And not a word of it is true.
But, when the 7-second sound byte rolls and the words "children"
and "business" are spoken, everybody knows who's gonna look
good...and who's gonna look evil. And school boards around the country
have had a field day demonizing the tourism industry on the school start
issue.
Even with the best p.r. campaign that money can buy and research stats
that prove, without a shadow of a doubt, that residents want a return
to a post-Labor Day School Start, it just ain't gonna play on the evening
news.
 Except
in Texas. Because parents have now organized in opposition to the Lone
Star State's insane August 2nd start date for many schools (and you
thought you had it bad). After years of getting beaten up on this issue,
the tourism industry got smart in 1998 when they realized that the one
word that can trump "the children" is "parents."
That's what happened when "Texans
for a Traditional School Year" stepped into the fray.
No longer was it the Darth Vadar-like tourism industry preying upon
helpless students, forcing them to work sweat-shop hours for minimum
wage lobbying for more days of summer. It was the parents. And who has
the best interests of children at heart more than parents?
Now over 3000 parents strong, TTSY appears to have the votes to achieve
meaningful reform to the way that school calendars are set in the upcoming
legislative session.
And the tourism industry? They're sitting this battle out. Never mind
that this was never about cheap labor. That it was always about extending
family time. That it was about providing a meaningful work experience
in the all-too-important service sector to teach our kids how to interact
with the rest of the world. That it was about providing these kids with
the money that they desperately needed to go to college.
No, never mind that the tourism industry had right on their side. They
just looked wrong. Tourism industries around the nation
would be wise to take a page from Texas' book as they try to save their
summers.
Click HERE for an update
on how TTSY succeeded in rolling back the calendar.
And,
hear the Texas story from Tina Bruno on DMOU
Teleseminars.
WHY A TRADITIONAL START DATE IS GOOD FOR STUDENTS
A study by the Employment Policies Institute found that students who
work are more likely to obtain better jobs upon graduation.
A full summer gives students the opportunity to apply what they have
learned in the classroom and gives them invaluable insight in choosing
a career path.
Summer employment allows many students to afford college without working
as many hours during the school year; allowing more time for academics
and extracurricular activities.
As the summer shortens, so does the time our children have to learn
outside the classroom. Activities such as scouting, camp, summer athletic
programs and family travel can be important learning experiences too.
Giving exams before or after a holiday break has long been debated.
It is clear that when exams are given is not as important as how children
are taught. Many educators believe giving tests after a break is a better
measure of true learning rather than memorization. Teachers report students
have the shortest attention span the week before a break. Students'
energy levels are high and concentration low.
Interestingly,
many of the nation's top academic districts begin school around September
1 and give exams after the holiday break.
-from Texans for a Traditional School Year
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