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is that since we are on the block schedule (similar to the semester system) we are able to complete an entire class prior to the winter holidays. When we return to school in January we begin a new semester. In the past we began in late August and for two weeks in January we had the same students again. Seniors were a particular problem, especially if they knew they were going to exempt the exam ("senioritis" as we call it). They knew how many times they could skip a class or be sent out before they lost their exemption for the final exam and they would take it to the limit before they stopped. However, this problem still exists regardless of the schedule.
Our summer vacation begins around 25 May and the students return in early August. The teachers return on 1 August.
When I was in school, the first day for students was the first Monday after Labor Day and ended in late May. Evidently, with the substandard performance of SC public schools some politician or bureaucrat decided that more time in the classroom would improve performance; it really has not.
In SC the teachers work 190 days of which we teach 180 days.
The only other explanation I can think of is that there are many holidays during the school year and this extends the yearly school calendar.
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