With rising fuel costs some schools (not here that I know of) are considering dropping a day from the school week to save money on transportation and heating and cooling costs. Interesting idea. At first I didn’t think I would like the idea but maybe it isn’t so bad. I assume it would mean a longer day and I think kids are already away from their parents for too long as it is. This is especially a concern for elementary ages, not so much for highschool. But when you consider how many children are either left home alone or attend an after school program this concern really isn’t very valid for many families. However this is a long time to expect kids to stay focused and academically alert. I think this could be solved by adding more time to the day and allowing a “free” time in the afternoon so students can recharge. Maybe take a “fun” class or have a rest. Something to break up the brain time.
The longer day could also interfere with sports teams (not that I think school is about sports, but it is still something to consider). Those that play on a sports team often get home late even with a five day week leaving little time for homework. A four day week would really push things back even more. But these are usually highschool students so I’m not too concerned. They can always schedule a study hall into their day if they need to.
My biggest concern is what will be done on that extra day that the parents are at work and the kids aren’t at school. This could get expensive for parents. But it may even out. They won’t have to pay for after school care and instead would pay one day of baby sitting.
I wonder why all districts aren’t doing this.
Entries (RSS)
Well as a parent that would have to figure out the logistics of all of that for two kids, I’m not for it. Maybe once they were in high school, but right now with bedtime as early as it has to be, I’d never see my kids. I’d love it if they could extend the day to match a work day, but I know that isn’t practical either because teachers need planning time. Honestly, at what I currently pay for after school care vs. a whole day, it wouldn’t save me that much money, but every little bit helps I guess.
I still worry about some of the kids though. Some parents are able to pick their kids up at the current time, because they work an evening shift. So if the kids didn’t get out until that shift had already started they might not get to see one parent at all during the week. I know some parents alternate shifts so they don’t have to pay a sitter and so a parent is always the caregiver.
It would benefit some, and hinder others just like all arrangements.
I’m against this and I hope it never happens here. My kids are tired of school just in the time frame they go each day. If they take off 1 day, the other 4 days will be longer. I feel kids after so many hours of school, start losing their attention and ultimately end up not trying as hard. It’s kind of like shoving all that education down their throats to fit it into a shorter school week. Plus they would still end up opening the schools anyway, for games, practices, etc.
Because I own my own business….my hours pretty much work well with my kids schedules, so that wouldn’t really be much of an issue. My concern is more for the kids.
Interestingly enough, children appear to respond well to the 4 day set up. I would think that for it to work the less academic classes would have to be scheduled for the end of the day.