Although families benefit from the 3-day weekend and those scheduling benefits, the non-traditional time off given to students can offset some of that savings. If so, keep reading. flexibility is why they are such staunch proponents of the 4-day school schedule. Students who attend year-round school have the same number of school days as their counterparts following a traditional schedule. (5) Most costs that were reduced were Operations and maintenance, heating and cooling, janitor supplies. (Lewis) In Bonneville, Idaho the school started later in the day which resulted in absences dropping 15%. They do have a full day free for a job in some instances, but trying to find work on the weekends only, especially in a rural community, is never a guarantee unless you dont mind working on a farm, that is. Increases student attendance. This extra hour can make the day pretty long especially for younger students, which can often lead to a loss of focus later in the day. Out of a budget of $5.5 million, they saved $206,000. That is a lot of time taken away, but if the school days were shortened, you would have a lot more time to do your activities. School districts consider shorter school days for several reasons, including saving money and providing students the ability to participate in more extracurricular activities. Four day school weeks may not be a realistic situation for all schools throughout the nation, but for those that it is possible, the four day school week saves money, improves test scores, and further improves the school as a whole. 4-day school weeks add Staff recruitment is easier with the 4-day school week for school districts. First, it would give students more time to focus on their homework and studies outside of school. More teaching: Covid-19 has resulted in a lot of disruption in teaching. When I was a teacher, many moons ago, this was a fringe schooling schedule only practiced by rural school districts. The school day was originally created to meet the needs of farmers. The Chattooga County School District in Georgia shifted to a 4-day school week. A new educational model could be implemented: 9-to-5 schools. Money is saved on that day because they don't have to run lights, heater or AC. First and foremost, an extended school day would provide students with extra learning time. Other concerns with early school start times and the resulting insufficient sleep include: Increased likelihood for participating in risk-taking behaviors, such as bullying and fighting. The school districts may operate classes Monday-Thursday on a 4-day week (or Tuesday-Friday in some instances), but they are still operational from an administrative standpoint on the off-day. According to a Center for American Progress study, traditional school schedules are out of sync with the current economic environment. Copyright (c) 2023 Matthew Lynch. The shorter the school day, the better? That may mean reducing Spring Break to 2 days instead of having the entire week off. Finalists and Winners of The 2022 Tech Edvocate Awards, Finalists and Winners of The 2021 Tech Edvocate Awards, Finalists and Winners of The 2020 Tech Edvocate Awards, Finalists and Winners of The 2019 Tech Edvocate Awards, Finalists and Winners of The 2018 Tech Edvocate Awards, Finalists and Winners of The 2017 Tech Edvocate Awards, 21 Ways to Teach Students to Use Learning Materials Appropriately, Classical Idealism: Everything You Need to Know, Good Research Topics about Womens Movement, Most Interesting Wine Essay Topics to Write about, Most Interesting Walmart Essay Topics to Write about, Most Interesting W.E.B. Over the course of their first year on this new schedule, they reported that the frequency of discipline referrals for their students dropped by 73%. As a result, learning is less effective due to budget constraints. Some school districts, particularly those that are in regions of the U.S. where snowfall creates a handful of cancellations each year, find that they are forced to reduce, if not eliminate, certain holidays or vacations. In 2009, there were 3,000 schools in the United States operating on a year-round basis. 3. Students feel less pressure because they have more time to study at their own pace at home, especially in the later grades. 1. Spread the loveThe International Baccalaureate Program is a very intensive pre-college program in which when students get involved, they get college credit. It might help school districts save money. Oklahoma Department of Education examined the economic effect of going to a Longer school days make no sense when there is so much else we could be doing with our time. Having students to fit 5 days' worth of classroom time into 4 days would make for a tiring schedule, where many of the younger school children would find it very difficult to focus on their study for such long periods. Schools across the country offer extended learning hours. This has been a hot topic especially the states that dont have as large of an economy. Does this sound exciting and rich with possibilities? Arlene Ackerman says she and her students don't have the strength to teach or learn near the end of the school day. Suffolk Public Schools went with a 7:25 am start time for their district and are saving almost $700,000 per year. Pros. Pro: An extended school day provides more time for students to learn and the possibility of providing individualized attention for students in need. In the United States, about 50% of all companies are either offering or thinking about offering a 4-day workweek for their workers. The disadvantage is that more time does not equate to more learning. Read the Full Transcript Judy Woodruff: For many American students and. One school said that they have saved a teacher in diesel fuel costs (chiaramonte 2 ). For school districts following the 4-day school week, the Thanksgiving holiday usually receives a full week off instead of the final two days of the week. Well, for some rural schools across the nation, this has become a reality. In New Mexico, 18 of the states 89 school districts are currently using this alternative schedule. One internet search reveals a wealth of opinions on both sides of the issue, and each argument sheds light on the topic. Year round schools, can actually benefit students in the long run. NOTE : The information on this website is for general information purposes only. Your typical school week: Monday-Friday with the hours sometime between 7 am- 4 pm. A switch to a 4-day schedule gives teachers more time to use teaching styles that are more effective. Wildbit, a company based in the US, a portion of whose workforce works remotely, tested the 4-day week to see whether the shorter working hours will affect employee productivity. NEA Today: A 9 to 5 School Day: Are Longer Hours Better for Students and Educators? over 1 million dollars on utilities, busing, and labor costs. How does it impact your success? One of the primary motivations for adopting the four-day week is financial savings for the school district. But others are worried about when kids should be in school. Pro: Education is a priority, and funding should not hold back efforts to provide more effective academic preparation for students. It has been so problematic that in Colorado, some urban districts which switched to a 4-day school week have gone back to the traditional scheduling instead. Recent survey findings show that four-day school weeks have been adopted as a way to alleviate budgetary issues, attract teachers, and reduce student absencesissues that the pandemic . Which one is the best? Some are facing the debate about whether to keep standardized tests or not. Since students receive dedicated 1:1 teaching for all core subjects, they don't need to bother spending time on topics that aren't on their instructional level. Many break times have been incorporated in the calendar, such as morning recess, afternoon recess, snack time, and so on. Spread the loveFor the past few decades, our countrys educational system has seen both struggle and tremendous change. 1. Sara Blackwell teaches Employment Law at University of South Florida in Tampa and she is a published author. . Spread the loveUsually, people are under the wrong impression that geography does not offer many job opportunities, and there are no jobs for a geographer. Cons of a Longer School Day Does Not Ensure Higher Achievement Some studies have been done that show that longer instruction time can improve achievement, but those results depend on things like classroom environment, quality of instruction, student prior knowledge and ability. Each community has unique needs which must be met, so there is the possibility of a 4-day week being useful to some districts, but not others. In Alabama, the school year lasts 180 days and the school day lasts 7.03 hours. Childrens schooldays should be around 8 hours long, and they should be school-aged all year. The capital, insurance, maintenance, and administrative costs remain relatively constant. Not only would this give everyone a 3-day weekend to enjoy, it would also limit the pressure on students and teachers to have a diversified learning experience in a compressed time period. One is that it would likely mean that teachers would have to teach more classes, which could lead to burnout. Spread the loveThis program assesses 15-year-old students schooling in countries that form part of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development. Dr. Kelly S. Meier - Updated May 03, 2019, Copyright 2023 Leaf Group Ltd. / Leaf Group Education, Explore state by state cost analysis of US colleges in an interactive article, NavajoCode: Unbiased Longer School Days Pros and Cons. Children have a six-week summer break and ten days of off every 45 days of class. These school districts are typically in isolated regions, are rural, and have a student body that is fewer than 500 students. This is one reason school districts use to implement dress codes. As you can see, there are a lot of pros and cons to the 4-day school week, but in terms of its long-term effect on academic outcomes, the jury is still out. A poll where 2,700 random people were polled about 67% favoured a 4 day school week(university of Scranton). Such as emotional and behavioral problems, violence, depression, alcohol use, impaired cognitive function, etc. It lists the advantages of the four-day model as: Improved morale and fewer absences: A shorter working week leads to less burnout, making staff happier and more focused in . 2023 The Black Well Firm. Spread the loveAre you looking for ways to teach students appropriate mealtime manners? We were able to build a strong community and school consensus as a result of our programs success. 2. Adds flexibility to teachers schedules. If so, keep reading. What are the pros and cons of longer school days? In the United States, the average school day is around six and a half hours long. Companies have been experimenting with shorter work days for at least a decade and, despite announcements that the 40-hour week is dead, there have been mixed results from the experiments. If you are arrested for spanking your child, you may face charges of assault, battery, child abuse, or domestic violence. This means students in a district with this alternative schedule get out later for the holidays than students on the traditional Monday-Friday schedule. The 4-day schedule eliminates one full driving day for the transportation department. 2. If you want to avoid withholding recess as punishment, consider rewarding yourself rather than punishing yourself, such as rewarding yourself with extra recess for good behavior.