Would you want a four-day school week? Though it’s not a super popular or widespread school schedule, many schools nationwide implement this unique schedule of omitting Friday from the school schedule and giving students a three-day weekend, for example, the Mormon Trail school district in Iowa.
A four-day school week is used by the Mormon Trail School District for its apparent benefits, According to [quote from Mormon Trail official district’s website], this approach is intended to “provide students with a more balanced life and a flexible learning environment.”
Benefits of a Four-Day School Week
Enhanced Student Attendance: according to the NCSL (National Conference of state legislatures) Fewer school days equals more student attendance and incentive to go to school, considering that 54% percent of the district is considered disadvantaged the district still maintains a high school graduation rate of 73.7. This is also able to help around at home.
Elevated Teacher Morale: Educators often appreciate the additional day off for instructional planning, professional development, and personal rejuvenation. This may lead to heightened job satisfaction an better instructional quality.
Economical Transportation: The condensed schedule typically results in reduced transportation expenses for school districts, including fewer bus routes and decreased fuel costs.
Diminished Operational Costs: A four-day school week can get cost savings in areas such as energy consumption, facility maintenance, and support staff salaries, which could have positive financial outcomes.
Improved Work-Life Balance: Both students and staff may experience a better work-life balance with an additional day for extracurricular activities, family time, and personal pursuits. With longer weekends sports and clubs get a tremendously longer amount of time to gather, than their five-day week counterparts.
Potential Academic Performance Improvement: Some studies suggest that a four-day school week can lead to better academic performance due to increased student focus and engagement during shorter school days. With attention spans shortening with the week shortening as well, it can help students give more genuine time for their studies.
The Mormon Trail School District underscores, in [quote from district’s website], that their four-day schedule is intended to “optimize educational outcomes while providing an environment that fosters student and staff well-being”. Many teachers feel overworked these days, the four-day week schedule would lift a considerable amount of stress off teachers and give them adequate time to schedule and plan.
While the four-day school week is not groundbreaking, it is nice to consider each community’s specific needs and goals The Mormon Trail School District’s decision to adopt this approach reflects its dedication to enhancing the well-being of students and staff.
