Like most things in life, summer school has its pluses and minuses.
Here's a look at its strengths and weaknesses.
The good:
- Remedial classes for elementary students help reduce the normal summer drop-off in knowledge.
- It's fast. A summer school class usually runs about three weeks. The rule of thumb is, one day of summer school equates to a week of regular school.
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- High school students who have failed a class can retake it in the summer, allowing them to graduate with their class.
- By taking basic classes in the summer, high school students can take more electives, or fewer classes in the regular school year.
- The size of summer school classes tends to be small. That helps students who do better with more individual attention.
The (potentially) bad:
- Most classes have strict attendance policies. Miss even a few days and you're booted out.
- Classes typically start early, usually at 8 a.m. and run until noon or 12:30. If you're not a morning person, you might struggle.
- Teachers generally don't cover quite as much material in a summer school class. If you really enjoy a subject, you might prefer to take it in the regular school year.
- Not everyone will understand why you're in summer school. Be prepared for a little razzing.
