4 ms·

WTF are kids doing at the school at 6:30 (Zero hour)? That's ridiculous.

liability 7y ago
School districts are pressured by parents with jobs to make the school day start early, so that parents and kids can leave the house at the same time in the morning.
- bonoboTP 7y ago
  Of course, because kids are so dependent on parents. Everything is interrelated. This just wouldn't be a problem in most places in Europe, because kids can take public transportation or walk.
  - liability 7y ago
    Typically in America, school districts operate buses that are available for any student not in walking distance. Children could (and sometimes do) catch those buses after their parents have already left for work, but many parents don't trust their children with that degree of autonomy.
    - bonoboTP 7y ago
      > but many parents don't trust their children with that degree of autonomy But I guess it would appear in the school records if they didn't go to school. At least in Hungary the state takes away certain benefits if the kid regularly doesn't go to school and it can also have other consequences as well, like having to repeat the year. But to some degree it should also be part of growing up. When we were 15-16 and all of us commuted by public transportation, a few times we skipped the first class and went to a pub instead. And I didn't become some lowlife gangster, I completed a CS degree with good results.
      - liability 7y ago
        When I was in elementary school I was regularly getting on the school bus by myself long after my parents left for work (at that time my mother wasn't a teacher). It worked fine for me and for plenty of other families. Parental attitudes changed more than anything else. Coddle kids longer, trust them less. That seems to be the current trend.
LeifCarrotson 7y ago
That's an extra class slot available at the parent's election. I took zero hour classes for civics and communication state requirements in the winter of my junior and senior years so I could take AP Physics and AP Chemistry, which were year-long classes that exceeded the science requirements and got me some college credit. In winter, it didn't interfere with sports, and you were going to be up 2 hours before the sun anyways, so why not 3? And no, there's no bussing for zero hour. You have to drive yourself to school, ride with a parent, or find a carpool setup for either of those.
- war1025 7y ago
  Thanks for the info. We never had anything such as a zero hour, but various extra-curriculars would take place in the hour or two before school started.

School districts are pressured by parents with jobs to make the school day start early, so that parents and kids can leave the house at the same time in the morning.

bonoboTP 7y ago
Of course, because kids are so dependent on parents. Everything is interrelated. This just wouldn't be a problem in most places in Europe, because kids can take public transportation or walk.
- liability 7y ago
  Typically in America, school districts operate buses that are available for any student not in walking distance. Children could (and sometimes do) catch those buses after their parents have already left for work, but many parents don't trust their children with that degree of autonomy.
  - bonoboTP 7y ago
    > but many parents don't trust their children with that degree of autonomy But I guess it would appear in the school records if they didn't go to school. At least in Hungary the state takes away certain benefits if the kid regularly doesn't go to school and it can also have other consequences as well, like having to repeat the year. But to some degree it should also be part of growing up. When we were 15-16 and all of us commuted by public transportation, a few times we skipped the first class and went to a pub instead. And I didn't become some lowlife gangster, I completed a CS degree with good results.
    - liability 7y ago
      When I was in elementary school I was regularly getting on the school bus by myself long after my parents left for work (at that time my mother wasn't a teacher). It worked fine for me and for plenty of other families. Parental attitudes changed more than anything else. Coddle kids longer, trust them less. That seems to be the current trend.

LeifCarrotson 7y ago

That's an extra class slot available at the parent's election. I took zero hour classes for civics and communication state requirements in the winter of my junior and senior years so I could take AP Physics and AP Chemistry, which were year-long classes that exceeded the science requirements and got me some college credit. In winter, it didn't interfere with sports, and you were going to be up 2 hours before the sun anyways, so why not 3? And no, there's no bussing for zero hour. You have to drive yourself to school, ride with a parent, or find a carpool setup for either of those.

war1025 7y ago
Thanks for the info. We never had anything such as a zero hour, but various extra-curriculars would take place in the hour or two before school started.