Following are reports from various sources showing the 7 Period Day is NOT effective. Do your own scouting. Don’t trust what I’ve found. Do your own research. But if you simply look at what I’ve provided, I think you will see there is enough of a question about this concept that charging ahead isn’t justified. I urge you to give the ASD your view.
7 period day does NOT impact budget positively.
Improving Student Learning When Budgets Are Tight Prepared for the The Education Policy and Leadership Center Conference on November 17, 2011
http://www.eplc.org/notebook2012/Allan%20Odden_November%2017_Education%20Finance%20Symposium.pdf
6 period day saves money over 7 period day!!
http://articles.sun-sentinel.com/1995-10-03/news/9510030124_1_seven-period-six-periods-school-day
At least the wisdom in the 90’s was to move AWAY From 7 and go to 6. Cost savings etc. So what? Now the math has become inverted?
There IS a budget impact from reducing Middle School planning periods
We know this is true and there are numerous articles which support it, like the one below. But for the district to say moving to a 7 period day is a savings is NOT accurate. The savings comes from reducing conference hours ONLY at middle school. Forcing high schools to do the same is merely a “we are all in this together” idea. Not any sound pedagogy. But there are a LOT of things different between middle school and high school. We do not have to have the same number of classes.
http://www.vbschools.com/administration/content/pdfs/budget/MSPlanningBudgetPres.pdf
Min/Max Concept
There is a optimal time to meet students etc. What this is, nobody really has determined, but isn’t more contact time better than less? Notice these schools CUTTING the number of classes per day.
http://www.ripon.k12.wi.us/cms_files/resources/RASD2011-13BudgetFAQs.pdf
School moving from an 8 period day to a 7 because it is more cost effective and better contact time. A similar argument could be made for 6 period day??
BLOCK vs 7 Period
There is a lot of mumbo jumbo coming out of ASD that switching from “our block schedule” to a 7 period day is being done all over the Lower 48. This is smoke and mirrors talk. Why? Because we do not have a Block schedule like they do in the Lower 48. What they call a Block Schedule is one where students meet in 3-4 classes every day for 9 weeks (or so) and get a full years credit for that class (because they meet for 2 hours each.) Problems with that schedule are many, including less class contact. But the main problem is that in a Block class, say Math, it only lasts from August to October. Now the kid takes the HSGQE in April, but he has not maintained any retention of the material. So he doesn’t pass. Most of the schools moving to a 7 period day are doing so from a 4 period AB Block system, which has clear disadvantages over a multi-period day (whether it is 6 or 7). But since we already HAVE a multi-period day with no “Block” style, moving to the 7 period doesn’t yield the benefits suggested.
7 Period Transition FAQ
http://www.neisd.net/ComRel/NEISD_ABScheduleChange_09/documents/ReplacingtheABSchedule.pdf
Notice this suggests moving from a BLOCK schedule to a 7 period day is a savings and gives more class time. We do not HAVE a BLOCK schedule. So all the “benefits” suggested by the 7 period day are lost. In fact, all the benefits suggested by 7 period day over a BLOCK are even more in the 6 period day over the 7.
Changes in Classroom
http://newspaper.neisd.net/reagan/2010/09/23/changes-in-the-classroom/
Similar to above
Lee County
http://www.wrbl.com/story/21333396/lee-county-boe-discusses-budget-7-period-day
Yet another
Las Vegas Sun
http://www.lasvegassun.com/news/2009/feb/17/budget-cuts-force-schools-drop-block-scheduling/
This school district has had Block scheduling and is moving to a schedule almost identical to what they have at West. See the last few paragraphs. Clearly what people are saying is that the BLOCK schedule (not what we have) is more expensive etc than a multi-period day. But the more classes you add to the multi-period day, the less return you get. In this article, they chose 6 as being better than 7.
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