How summer vacation became a burden for some families

Contrary to a widely held perception, public school summer vacations are not getting shorter. And that's a shame.

Despite some movement toward "balanced schedules" that include more breaks during the school year, summer vacations still average 10 weeks, unchanged from 20 years ago. Trimming back this mind-numbing break would improve our kids' scholastic performance and take an onerous burden off middle and lower income families.

The notion of the shrinking summer break stems from a growing shift in its timing. When I was a kid, summer vacation ran from early June to the day after Labor Day. This year, my daughter started school on Aug. 4. A neighboring school district resumed classes on July 31. School officials say the early start allows them to complete the semester and conduct final e