LAUSD lengthens 2022-23 school year to make up for lost instructional time during COVID
The Los Angeles Unified School District announced Tuesday that it will slightly lengthen the 2022-23 academic year in an effort to make up for lost in-person instructional time due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
The LAUSD Board of Education voted to unanimously to approve a new calendar that will see the school year start on Aug. 15, 2022, and end on June 15, 2023.
The district will add four optional instructional days to give students more time in the classroom in order to make up for the time they lost during the pandemic.
The four "acceleration days" will be spread across multiple Wednesdays throughout the school year. The extra time will be targeted for students who are falling behind.
"The acceleration days are designed to benefit those who need to cover the most academic ground and will address the critical goals of the board, including literacy, numeracy and credit recovery to reach proficiency and be prepared for college and career success.
Teachers will also get three professional development days in August, just prior to the start of the school year. These days will also be optional.
"The school calendar provides a meaningful investment in our students and teachers to address the crisis facing us today," LAUSD Superintendent Alberto M. Carvalho said in a statement. "Doing the same thing that we've always done is quite frankly not acceptable. The accelerated learning days will be designed to provide a deep level of supplemental academic support for our students who need it the most - students who have lost the most ground, students in foster care, students with English language limitations or one or more disabilities. We must have the courage and compassion to provide extended quality instruction time for these students and professional development for our teachers."