In the conservative American state of Oklahoma, some cash-strapped schools open only four days a week. To save costs and to give teachers the opportunity to work a second job to make up for their measly pay, more than 200 state schools close on one weekday.

Oklahoma is not alone. Budget-constrained schools in Colorado, Montana and Oregon, often in rural areas, have switched to four days a week. That the richest country in the world no longer provides all school-aged children five days of education a week is an example of America's glaring challenges.