A school district in western Minnesota is proposing a four-day school week, an idea that, if approved by the education department, could spread across the state as districts look to save on transportation dollars.

And while it would indeed help rural districts combat the high cost of transporting students, it would lead to larger troubles in the end.

Many parents would need to find daycare for their school-age children one day a week, for one, and it&8217;s easy to worry about the quality of education students would get if they&8217;re only in class four days a week. It&8217;s hard getting back into the swing of things after a three-day weekend &8212; and transitioning to a five-day week once they get to college wouldn&8217;t be an easy transition for many students.

What&8217;s more, the state&8217;s school calendars still revolve around the agricultural seasons &8212; in many rural districts, teenagers are needed home on the farm during the summers. Meeting the state-mandated minimum number of school days while still freeing up summers, not only for farm kids but also those who work seasonal jobs, may be harder to deal with than rising fuel prices.

&8212; Austin Daily Herald, May 14