Should schools be able to add an extra 2 hours a day and five extra days a year?

== '''Should schools be able to add an extra 2 hours a day and five extra days a year? - 11/10/2007 (https://www.debate.org/debates/Should-schools-be-able-to-add-an-extra-2-hours-a-day-and-five-extra-days-a-year/1/)''' ==

Round 1
smileymia24: "In certain places of the world, schools are adding 2 extra hours to a regular six hour school day and 5 extra school days to a school year. I am completely against it. It is just another way to take from young children's lives. I of course believe in going to school and learning and yes I highly believe that going to school while you can is what will shape your future for later in life, yes I believe it, so don't confuse the debate. But that's not the only important thing for kids to witness at this age of their life.

Having a social life, being involved with extra-curricular activities, and having family time is just as important as going to school to learn. Taking two more hours per day from a child's "home" time, and "friend" time etc. is taking away apart of their life. Homework and tests and projects and schoolwork are way out of control. Ask ANY older person about back in the day when they were in school. Nowadays we are expected to know and learn so much then before, and we are expected to be perfect, and to meet every teacher's expectations. Before (and yes i realize things are different today than before) kids didn't have as much homework nor did they have to have as much dedication to school. So why is fair to take away even more from these kids social lives? It's not."

james94: "I think that adding 2extra hours per school day would benefit students greatly. The students would be able to study and learn better from their teachers . If they would have given students the 2 extra hours that they needed the children would not have the social problems that they have today.

That is not to say that it would take away from their home and social lives. I also believe that children would be better educated."