A dilemma has appeared in many schools around the country lately over the topic of switching to a block schedule or staying with the traditional system of seven classes to cut down costs; while the block system is the best choice, both systems affect the schools differently in a number of places that range from the students’ well being to the amount of money that goes into each school system.
The block system is designed so that the students have four classes a day for one semester and then four different classes the next semester, which allows the students to complete a total of eight credits by the end of the year; this schedule is also a more time manageable schedule which benefits everyone (Edwards, 1993).
The traditional system is setup differently, the students will have six to seven classes (depending on the school they are attending) and they will attend the same classes over the course of a year, ending with six to seven credits compared to the eight credits students with the block system average, in this area the block system is more beneficial to the student’s and their overall learning. There are many aspects of block scheduling that allow teachers to reach certain accomplishments throughout the school year. “With block scheduling, a teacher deal with fewer pupils during the day, therefore allowing the teacher to spend much more time with each individual student (Education Up Close).” Due to the classes having less students in them, it provides an easier
In order to accommodate the year round calendar, there are several forms of year round education. The first form follows a single track calendar. This is the most popular type of calendar (Shields, 2000). A single track year is usually implemented to “provide a more balanced and enriched education program or to accommodate the special scheduling needs of a community” (Glines, 2002, 2699). A single track calendar takes on a 45/15 design. This is where students go to school for forty-five days in a row, and then have a fifteen day break. It is a continuous cycle. Schools usually begin in early August, and follow this pattern four times to complete the school year (Glines, 2002). The three week break in between is called an intersession. During this time, students can choose to take additional educational courses through “remedial,
This shows that year-round school is at least as good as the traditional schedule in helping students learn. Year-round school also allows more time for remedial classes during the breaks, which can help students who are falling behind during the school year catch back up. This is in contrast with summer school, which only occurs after school is over and students are finished with the curriculum, making students have to start a totally new class just to catch up. Remedial classes reinforce material that is fresh in students’ minds instead of forcing them to recall something they may have learned half a year ago and probably forgotten. This once again cuts down on the time it takes to bring students up to speed with their classes.
4x4 block scheduling would be easier.. Teachers have to teach 3 classes for 90 minutes each and get a 90 minute planning period, which gives teachers time to prepare for the class. Teachers even have less students to teach with the 4x4 schedule which means less papers to grade. Also for students, 4x4 block scheduling is less overwhelming than A/B. 8 classes at a time is a lot to handle and definitely a lot to remember. Students
In 2007, the school had a change in leadership and had students attend 2 periods per day, mourning class and afternoon class. They would complete a semester's worth of work in 21 days, then focus on 2 additional classes for another 21 days. So that at semester, students would have completed 6 classes like the rest of the building. The only hiccup with this is attendance was so bad, if students missed more than 2 days it was equivalent to missing 3 weeks of school at the comprehensive setting. Students had to have homework logs documenting how many hours of homework they had completed.
Have you ever wondered what the difference between traditional schooling and year-round education is? Maybe you didn’t know that there are more than one type of year-round education. A year-round school schedule can benefit educators, students, and even families. Year-round schooling is where the breaks in school are on a balanced schedule. Instead of having a three month summer break, there would be 60 days off and then the students would be back to school. If on a multi track schedule, teachers could use their off time to substitute at their school on a different track or at another school to get paid more. For students, the shorter breaks away from school increase retention rates, therefore reducing the amount of review necessary at
Adding just an extra ten minutes to each class, the new schedule would create the potential for students to have more homework time, lab time, learning time, and/or valuable free time to read for pleasure, relax with music, draw, etc. (Hadfield). Especially as students get older and more involved in extracurriculars and rigorous academic courses, the need for any spare moment to get assignments done, study, or even sleep increases. When this time is unavailable or extremely hard to get, students are more likely to fall asleep in class, miss school due to illness, misbehave, cheat, hand in incomplete assignments, or drop out altogether. The same is largely true for teachers. The more homework turned in by students, the more grading has to be done by teachers who are already exhausted from a long, often repetitive day of work. Therefore, it is important to emphasize the fact that this extra time should not be used to cram in larger quantities of learning standards or homework problems, but rather to enhance the quality of the already demanding school regulations that are in schools
First and foremost, if students have to come back from school later in the day then the after school activities will be shortened. Their sport practices will be shortened and they won’t have time work on any work in
Having seven classes one after the other, about forty-five minutes each is stressful. It's difficult to make all your classes a priority as it's a tight schedule. You have to worry about what you're doing in seven classes EVERY DAY. A report by the National Education Commission on Time and Learning advised: “schools to be less rigid in how they use time and urged the use of block scheduling and an extended school year”. It is important for schools to use the class hours wisely and effectively, not shoving in as much as they can into small timed classes. Advocates of block-scheduling say “longer classes create more opportunities for hands-on lessons and allow students to concentrate on their work for longer stretches without being interrupted by the ringing of a bell”. Allowing students more time to work puts less pressure of being ‘finished by the bell’. They also say less time is wasted. Block schedules reduce the time students use walking class to class, and the time it takes to get settled into the day's lesson. Once you decrease this time wasted and increase the learning period, students will feel less stress. They will have fewer things to worry about, as will the
The 45-15 and 45-10 schedules are divided into 45 school days and 15, or 10, days of vacation. The 60-20 and 60-15, and the 45-15 and 45-10 plans can be, and usually are, combined with either the single or multi-track systems. In the Concept 6 plan, the school year is divided into six 43 day terms. This term is similar to block scheduling. Students and teachers go to two consecutive sessions and then they have one session off (Palmer & Bemis, 1999).
What is your least favorite class, the one you dread most? Picture yourself walking into that class, taking a seat, and watching the clock move slowly as you suffer through the next 90 minutes. Yes, you read that correctly. Imagine being stuck in your least favorite class for an hour and a half! This is a reality that many high school students experience every day. It is block scheduling. “Unlike traditional bell schedules - which typically comprise six to eight class periods per day, lasting anywhere from 45 to 60 minutes - block schedules contain just four daily class periods, with each one lasting an average of 90 minutes” (Block Scheduling in Schools 1). Although designed to increase student achievement, block schedules carry a number of disadvantages that make them an inadequate method for offering high school students a successful learning environment. Despite its few benefits, block scheduling works in direct conflict with most human attention spans, creates more scheduling problems than it solves, and lacks any solid evidence of improving student learning. In a world where educational practices come and go, block scheduling is a fad that should never have arrived in the first place.
In contrast to a traditional school schedule, a block schedule consists of different variations, such as A/B and 4x4 schedules. In an A/B schedule, classes meet every other day for an extended period of time. Students take eight classes throughout the year, taking four classes on A Days and alternating the other four on B Days.“The A days would be Monday, Wednesday, Friday, etc. Each class period
The overall logistics run much smoother in schools that have four day weeks compared to the five day week. “Some districts had experienced a decline in dropout rates, decreased disciplinary referrals, improved attendance, fewer class interruptions, more positive attitudes about school, and better staff development” (Yarbrough and Gilman 81). Another logistical benefit to having four day school week is that students have more time to get involved in extracurricular activities due to more availability
When you first hear about the schedule and look at its outline, it sounds pretty solid. More breaks, longer breaks, and the main idea of getting done with core classes faster. For a student, hearing that sounds pretty good. For example if a student doesn’t lie one of the core classes then they would only have to put up with it for one-quarter.
Some schools with year-round schooling utilize something called the “multi-track” system. Essentially, the school is divided into four or five different “tracks.” Vacations are staggered between the tracks in such as way so that while three out four tracks are currently in school, the other track is on vacation. When one track returns, another track goes on vacation. By staggering vacations, overcrowded schools can alleviate some of the stress of having too many students.
It is October 15th. Normally, students would be at school, working for hours on end at math, communication arts, and science. But this year is different. This year your school has now entered into the year-round calendar system. At home, you can enjoy the season of fall with pumpkins, Halloween, and beautiful weather. The idea of year round school has most commonly been pushed aside because of the misconception that it is too much school, or an on-going cycle of learning. However, those who declare this, do not understand the year-round school concept. Year-round school provides the same number of days as the traditional calendar. The difference, which will change our society and the achievement rate of our students in the future, is that the days are reordered into intersessions. The mechanisms of year round school include students attending school for a nine week period, then following this is a three week break. This rotation occurs year-round with a slightly longer summer break. Consequently, Though many people agree with keeping tradition with the popular school calendar, new evidence and testimony proves that year-round school provides the better avenue because the world is evolving, it benefits low income students, and intersessions are more effective than summer break.