Winter break projects are a thing of the past, according to the new 2009-2010 and 2010-2011 calendars approved by the Palo Alto Board of Education last week.

The board passed the modified calendars in a 5-0 vote, indicating the widespread support for the proposed changes, such as an assignment-free winter break and first semester finals held later in January.

According to the board packet from the meeting, the calendars will now incorporate the following statement:

“The winter break is intended to be a time that is free from schoolwork for students and staff. There should be no expectations on the part of students or staff that schoolwork is done over this period. No assignments should be given over the winter break, and any long-term assignments given before winter break should not be due during the first week back from the break.”

Board Vice President Barb Mitchell said that the board’s passage of the calendars with the assignment-free break reflects the PAUSD community’s value of “working hard and playing hard.”

Mitchell cited this belief as a unifying factor that contributed to the calendars’ unopposed approval.

“That [the work hard-play hard ideal] was clearly the strongest principle that pulled us [board members] together,” Mitchell said.

According to the board packet, another major change that will be present in each new calendar is that first semester finals will take place one week later than normal, during the third week of January, in order to lessen the pressure on students to study over break.

Mitchell noted that December and January are some of the busiest months in the school year, putting more demands and more stress on both students and staff.

“Students and staff members have legitimate concerns about where to place finals,” Mitchell said.

Some community members want to move finals before winter break altogether, in order to achieve what Carolyn Williams, a member of Student Health Awareness through Research and Education (SHARE), calls a “summer-style winter break,” devoid of school-related activity.

Board President Dana Tom also supports the idea of pre-break finals.

“I think that would be a big positive, so that students come back to school refreshed and ready to learn,” Tom said.

Tom also cited his own research into the success of pre-break finals in other districts, saying that, out of 20 e-mail responses he received from school board members in those districts, 18 said that having early finals was a positive change.

Mitchell said, however, that there were some mixed messages in other data that was gathered.

There was not enough overall support for early finals to make them part of the approved calendars. Part of this resistance was due to student stress concerns about finals coinciding with college application submissions.

Mitchell acknowledged that such considerations are necessary, saying that seniors are often consumed with finishing their applications in the week before break.

According to Mitchell, the board took a step in a new direction when board members scheduled a January 2010 check-up on the effect of the calendar changes; the board has never before organized a way to monitor the success of a school calendar, Mitchell said. The check-up will take the form of a student survey about how well the calendars have fulfilled their purpose of lowering stress levels.

For an in-depth discussion of the issues surrounding the calendars, see Board to vote on calendar proposal Tuesday night.