High school students in Palo Alto will take their winter break next month knowing they’ll have final exams waiting for them when they return, but a school board vote tonight may change that practice for future classes.
Palo Alto Unified School District trustees will decide whether to start the 2011-12 and 2012-13 school years three days earlier than years past, allowing teachers to schedule exams before winter break instead of in mid-January. Students would start classes on Aug. 18 next year and Aug. 16 the following year.
“I think that high school students have for years expressed an interest in having finals before winter break,” Superintendent Kevin Skelly said. “Many, if not most of the schools in our area, are having finals before winter break.”
The proposal has split parents into different camps. The district had received nearly 430 e-mails on the controversial idea as of Oct. 26, the last time it discussed changing the school calendar.