Intersession intervals can also be excellent times to prepare for music contests, SAT or ACT exams, or academic decathlons. For high school students, fall and winter intersessions can be desirable times to visit prospective college campuses. Contrary to popular opinion, year-round education does not damage athletics. Teachers can take advantage of year-long opportunities for staff development . Teachers' fears that an alternative calendar will prohibit them from pursuing advanced degrees have not been realized.
Graduate schools live by the law of supply and demand.
When teachers need inservice or graduate training throughout the year, schools provide it. In areas where several teacher institutions vie for graduate students, the institutions compete vigorously to provide classes at times convenient to teachers. Year-round students in low socioeconomic schools also performed better in both reading and math. School districts that follow a year-round calendar have also found better student and teacher attendance, lowered student dropout rates, and decreased antisocial behavior, with fewer discipline referrals and lessened vandalism. Such has been the experience of schools as diverse as Garfield High School in Los Angeles to Robert Coleman Elementary School in Baltimore.