A Change - Part 1

One of the things that strikes me as odd about how the school day works is this:
Students go to school from 8-9 until 2-3. Some kids only go half the day (the little ones who need the most attention in order to not fall behind while they're just starting). However, At most, their school day is approximately 7.5 hours long, which includes a half hour for lunch. Middle school and high school students are there for about 7 hours a day. That means that they have six to seven hours everyday to learn English (which includes reading and writing), math, social studies, science, and let's not forget physical education and health education. They may have time for recess - but then again, they may not. So that means that they're expected to sit for several hours a day without much break learning all these subjects. If they're in a good district, they can expect to have inventive and fun ways to learn that will help this information stick. If not, it's a wonder that they don't learn much.
Parents who work full time work at least 8 hours a day, five days a week. 40 hours is the definition of full-time. If you're like any of the parents I know, it's more than 40 hours a week. I once took care of my niece and two nephews and held on to 3 part-time jobs on top of going to school full time. I was busy until 7pm every night and had to find a sitter for when the kids got out of school. It's a situation I know that many parents face when looking at working full time: having to find a part-time job to pay for daycare for the full-time job they already have.


What if the school day were longer? I'm not suggesting that teachers work longer hours; simply that they be given the time they need to prepare and discuss with other teachers about lesson plans, teaching strategies - the things that make us better teachers. Lots of schools have after school programs, so why can't we make those an extension of the school day? In China, I noticed that students were in the building for a considerable amount of time more than our students are. This isn't because they're in class cramming all day - they take at least two to three twenty minute breaks to exercise as a whole. Whether it be playing outside or doing actual exercises, this is the case. I'm not sure that every class is outside at the same time, but it would be fairly easy to schedule that so that teachers aren't overwhelmed with antsy students in their classroom. It would also give them that needed break to prepare for what's to come.
As for the extension of the school day? Let's be honest: a lot of schools are struggling. Families in those schools are struggling too. Some kids don't even know whether they'll have dinner or not when they get home. A lot of them don't know if they'll have a quiet place to complete homework or if they'll even be able to when they get home. Students are struggling with homework that they can't ask a parent for help with. Sure, there are plenty of parents who care about their children. What if that isn't enough? What if they need help that their parents can't provide? What if they can't always afford to put food on the table? I"m not suggesting that the school take up that responsibility entirely- but lots of money in my state gets wasted that is available for after school and summer programs.
I left this post and came back to it in an effort to clear my mind and allow time to collect my thoughts. Well, I found an article about longer school days- and an initiative about it. That will be my next post. Cataloging the research I find and what I get from them. Until next time!