| Shortened School Week- (4-Day School Week)
Because of budget constraints, many school districts across the country are exploring alternative styles of schooling. One of those being considered, and actually used in more than 100 school districts nationwide is a 4 day school week. The idea is to still attend school for the same amount of time, but instead of 180 "days" of school, it is the "hour equivalent" of that many days. In order to accomplish this, those hours lost for each instructional day are added to the remaining four days. It might be something as simple as adding just 1 1/2 hours to each of the four remaining school day. By doing this, students would be attending 36 less days of school each year (for instance, 36 Fridays, one for each week of school). Most schools opt to have either Monday or Friday be their "off" day. This type of schedule is often implemented in small, rural school districts because of the savings they find due to transportation costs. Switching to a 4-day week can often be less painful for a district than dropping extracurricular activities, laying off teachers, or cutting non-core classes such as Art, Music, and P.E.
Of course, as with every idea, there are pros and cons to its proposal. Several studies were carried out during the 1980s and 1990s and several interesting benefits were found using the 4-Day School Week.
Pros
Student drop-out rates decline
Student disciplinary referrals decrease
Student achievement not affected
Save Money-transportation, electricity, substitutes
Better Attendance-both student and teacher
Longer class periods-less interruptions to school day
Time for faculty training on day off
Less school missed due to athletics and doctor appointments
Cons
Daycare issues
Longer class periods- attention span, especially in lower grades
Hungry Children-no free meals at school on that off day. So only 4 days a week
Shorter evenings for teachers to grade papers and prepare for following day
Shorter evenings for students to finish homework
Children who miss one day of school can get farther behind
Websites:
-NWREL- Scheduling Alternatives: Options for student success
A well written pamphlet that explores scheduling alternatives including: Block scheduling, 4-day school weeks, and year round schooling written by the Northwest Regional Educational Laboratory.
-An article written by Alex Bloom for The Arizona Republic that discusses several school districts who are considering switching to a 4-day week to ease budget concerns. It also lists pros and cons along with parent and student reaction to the schedule.
http://www.azcentral.com/news/articles/2008/11/09/20081109ed4dayweek1109.html
-Time- Four-Day School Weeks
An article written by Kathleen Kingsbury, August 14,2008 for Time.com which outlines some successful schools who transitioned to the 4-day school week within the last few years.
http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,1832864,00.html
-Is the Four-Day School Week Coming Your Way?
Education World
This article examines the result of a Saratoga, Arkansas school district's switch to a 4-day week. It visits the school one year after first implementing the new schedule to see how the changes affected the district.
http://www.educationworld.com/a_admin/admin/admin073.shtml
- The Principals' Partnership-The Four Day School Week
A pamphlet produced by The Principals' Partnership answering three questions:
1. Can four-day school weeks help districts save money?
2. How do districts overcome the barriers of moving to a four-day week?
3. What is the effect of a four-day week on students, staff and the community?
http://www.principalspartnership.com/fourdayschoolweek.pdf
-The Four-Day Week
A wonderfully written document that outlines the Hot Springs South Dakota School District's plan and gives good advice to other districts considering moving to a 4-day week. It lists:
Background Information
What our research says
Why make the change?
What changes can you expect?
The Student day
How can I help?
What are we learning?
A final decision
Block Scheduling
What is block scheduling?
This is an alternative schedule that provides extended time in the classroom. The purpose is to provide a long period of uninterrupted teaching. Students essentially attend half as many classes for twice the amount of time.
What does a block schedule look like?
There are two common types of block scheduling. There is an A/B schedule and a 4X4 schedule.
| Fictional example of block scheduling
| | Time
| Mon (A)
| Tue (B)
| Wed(A)
| Thu (B)
| Fri (Mixed)
| | 08:45 – 10:20
| Math
| English
| Math
| English
| Math
| | 10:20 – 12:05
| English
| | 12:05 – 12:45
| Lunch
| | 12:50 – 14:20
| History
| Science
| History
| Science
| Science
| | 14:25 – 16:00
| History
|
Above is a fictional example of a block schedule for core classes. This schedule is an “A/B” schedule that causes certain classes to be held on certain days. Fridays, in a block schedule, provide an opportunity to rotate between the core subjects. Additional times would be added to accommodate specials and electives.
This schedule can be changed further by removing Friday as mixture of classes to either an A or B day. Weeks can be arranged by either ABABA or BABAB. This could also change by quarter or semester.
| Example of 4x4 block scheduling
| | Time
| Quarter 1
| Quarter 2
| Quarter 3
| Quarter 4
|
| | 08:00 - 09:25
| English 1
| Science 1
| Spanish 1
| Health
|
| | 09:35 - 11:00
| Math 1
| English 2
| Woods
| Spanish 2
|
| | 11:00 - 11:35
| Lunch
| | 11:35 – 13:00
| Computer
| Ind. Tech
| Phy Ed
| History 2
|
| | 13:10 – 14:50
| History 1
| Math 2
| Bus. Ed
| Science 2
|
|
Above is a fictional example of a 4X4 block schedule. This schedule indicates a three core class per day schedule while including an additional elective class throughout the day. Each class is a semester long (in its entirety) and can either be taken two quarters back to back, or spaced out throughout the year. The electives are a quarter long, and are the focus of the third quarter. This schedule can be arranged to accommodate any order the school district feels would work best.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Block_scheduling
Why is a block schedule beneficial?
There are several reasons why block scheduling can be beneficial. The most obvious is that more instructional time is given to teachers. Within the allotted times, teachers also have the opportunity to go into greater detail with the lessons they are giving. Further, students are given the advantage of focusing more intensely on four classes per day as opposed to 6 or 7. Teachers are also able to better prepare for their classes that allows for better use of instructional time.
With more time being offered, students and teachers have the opportunity to go into greater depth with the topics that are being discussed.
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