Students go to summer school to get ahead in academics, to make up a class, spend times with friends, or to occupy themselves during the summer. However, going to summer school doesn’t offer the full educational experience, as some may think. The short three weeks are filled with distractions, rushed studies, and not enough time for fun.

Summer school runs for four days a week, for five hours a day. While that may seem like a lot of time focused on one subject, Shannon Eichwald, English teacher, recommends taking courses, like Creative Writing, during the year because the courses can go more in depth on material.

A regular school semester contains about 18 weeks, while a summer semester is just three weeks. As a result, the courses can easily feel rushed and students aren’t getting the same experiences as students do during the school year.

“As a teacher, we are limited on the topics we can cover, and some other times, I feel like I have to speed through [some] segments,” John Jorgensen, summer school government teacher, said.

Plus, not only are the classes rushed, but students are rushed through breaks, too. A school day is much more enjoyable when breaks can last longer than 15 minutes. During the year, students get 45 minute lunches, as well as study halls or opens. Students need downtime, and summer school simply doesn’t offer enough.

Students in summer also have to avoid some major distractions that are surrounding them. They have to avoid the wonderful thoughts of a stress-free summer, and ignore the loud noises that construction power tools are making next door.

During the summer, construction occurs throughout the school. Bathrooms are being updated, roofs are being fixed, and improvements to the fields are being made. Walls shake and drills screech. While there are not as many students during the summer, they can be bothered by the noisy work and it can be very distracting.

Summer school can be improved, but for now, learning difficult material won’t be understandable if the process is too rushed and loud noises in the background disrupt learning.  The option of going outside and enjoying the beautiful weather is much better than stressing out over school work, so students shouldn’t waste their summers in summer school.