Thanksgiving is a time when family and friends can reunite over a homecooked meal to celebrate what they are grateful for. Sometimes, that means flying across the country, and other times, crossing the street. Whatever your situation may be, most Laguna Beach High School students agree that the extra time off for Thanksgiving break was a perfect addition for various reasons. The Laguna Beach Unified School District’s Board of Education believes a two-day holiday would work best next year, which is just a long weekend. This is, unsurprisingly, a decision that students, teachers, and I unanimously disagree with.
The Laguna Beach Unified School District’s Education Board has one main reason behind their choice. Since we must have a certain number of days in a school year, the extra couple of days we received this year will be removed from our summer break. Even though it put off a few students, most agreed they preferred the November time off. Each had their reasons, but the summoning theme was that the extra time caused fewer absences and “illnesses” and gave a much-needed mental health break.
Freshman Natalia Calef states, “I was able to spend quality time with my family and recharge. Students must take that extra time off to preserve mental health, especially before finals”.
She makes a fantastic point about how the whole school will work overtime two weeks after the break ends to prepare for our final exams. Ultimately, there will be an increase in productivity when students arrive back at school. The U.S. National Insitute of Health states that 31% of people suffer from anxiety disorders, and the time off provides them and others with an essential pause before jumping into a whole other world of stress.
In California, “sick season” starts at the beginning of October and ends in the middle of May (Epidemiology Program). In school, we are all forced together in very close quarters for an extended time, allowing lots of exposure. That means students fall ill left and right during November, pilling up absences. If the students are give a break, they limit their exposure, decreasing absences and providing already sick students time to recover without worrying about missing assignments.
During Thanksgiving, families reunite, which sometimes means flying to their loved ones, which takes time. If the break begins exactly on Thanksgiving, the force to leave school early for vacation will increase as well meaning that missed class time will occur. The crazy thing is that an inside source claimed that even after saying that she wanted the break to be shorter, a school board member took her daughter out of school before the more extended break that we had. This proves that time off helps keep absences at a minimum.
Multiple teachers here at Laguna have informed me that the school district sent out a survey to ask parents for their opinions in light of the debate. Help the Laguna Beach community and vote for the more extended break because, honestly, how would you rather spend your week leading up to Thanksgiving, turkey or textbooks?
