Regardless of where you as a parent went to high school, whether in Connecticut or California, the school day routine was nearly always the same. That is, the day was divided into six or eight class periods of equal length and every forty or fifty minutes a bell or buzzer signaled time for change of classes. At that point you and I and hundreds of others swept up our stuff and moved on.
Each teacher had his or her own little adaptations. For example, in one class I remember the English teacher had an ironclad rule that if the bell sounded in the middle of an explanation, we were to stay put until she completed her thought and excused us. This was mere politeness, of course, but it had the sure effect of being late to the math class on the other side of the building.
Mr. Mathematics, the next teacher, was a bear about lateness. No excuses. And heaven help you if you also had to make even a speedstop in the lavatory.
That school schedule ruled the curriculum and made the day for most of us a series of unrelated quick takes. Many schools still have the same routine, but a big change is underway. It is called "block scheduling." Watch for reports of its introduction in your local school system.
What is a block schedule? The basic idea is that the school day would be more focused, more academic, and less hectic if there were fewer changes of class and if students took fewer separate courses. So one way to do it is to rearrange the whole school year into two separate semesters and then divide the day into four 90-minute blocks. This is called the "four by four" schedule.
Each term a student takes four courses, not the customary six or more. Thus, your kids might take English, History, Math, and Science the first half of the year, completing the year's work. Then they might take a full half year of arts, French, a computer science elective, and a second full English course. When you figure the wasted time of passing from class to class every 45 minutes and the wasted stop and start time and the loss of focus in the old style day, the result can be better teaching and learning.
Another type of block schedule is the "alternate day." Here students take half of their classes for longer periods one day and the other half of the classes the next day, also for longer periods. Here again, the day is less fragmented and student attention more focused.
Here are some of the other advantages of block schedules:
- Teachers meet fewer kids each day and therefore have more time to attend to each.
- Teachers can engage students in more complex topics and activities.
- Students can do more demanding and lengthy homework assignments, since they are preparing for half the number of classes each day.
- Parent-school contact is facilitated, since high school teachers have fewer different kids each day and can make follow-up calls more readily.
- Many block scheduled schools report that student attendance is up and that more students get on the honor roll. It is not entirely clear why this happens, but it may be that the less frantic day reduces tension and gives students more of a sense of control. It also may be a very short run effect, based mainly on the novelty of the new format.
- One thing does appear in all the studies I have seen: When asked, high school students say they like the new block schedules far more than the old pattern. That cannot help but be good news for parents, teachers and learners.
However, not all the news about block schedules is encouraging. In my column next week I'll examine why your school needs to be cautious. Meanwhile, you may find it interesting to visit the Putnam County Schools in West Virginia, which reports it is happy with the innovation. Find it at http://www.citynet.net/putnam/4by4.html.
