Our Shorter School Day is a Positive Change

by Grace Sun

Starting in September, one of many changes brought to the high school was an abridged school day, with classes starting later while finishing a bit earlier. Shifting the start time back better aligns in-school time with teenage sleep schedules and leaving the end time untouched does not contribute to the disruption of afterschool clubs and athletics.

Many teachers have expressed some disinclination towards the shortened day, which when summed over the entire educational year, has taken away about forty hours of live instruction time per block. To balance out this time loss, material that would have been covered in class is now assigned as homework. However, even with the added homework, the student workload has overall been manageable, suggesting teachers have adapted well to the new schedule and are utilizing class time quite effectively.

Less structured teaching time shifts responsibility to learn towards students. Students now must take a more active role in their learning since there is less in-class time available for questions. There are many ways to seek outside of classroom help. Some teachers have set up extended office hours after school where discussions are highly personalized. Further distribution of Chromebooks opens the way for office hours during free mods or dropping into tutoring sessions at the Academic Resource Center.

It may be true that students who prefer more structured days may experience an initial decline in their quality of education. Even pre-recorded lessons, one of the best ways to make up for live teaching, do miss the aspect of being able to ask questions and get instant feedback. Live teaching is what we are used to after all. However, I believe this benefits all students in the long run as I believe learning to find help when needed is a good skill to learn, and is applicable beyond just high school.

Perhaps the best aspect of the new schedule is that each school day is about an hour shorter than last year, leaving an hour more of flexible time to students and staff alike. Some may use this hour to recover those lost in school, whether it is doing extra homework, extra grading, or visiting extended office hours. Others may use this free hour for anything from pursuing personal hobbies to catching up on sleep to spending time with loved ones. Regardless, High school is a formative time where students can explore spheres of interest very freely, as opposed to college where students stress about deciding a major to follow. The additional unstructured free time is conducive to students developing their own interests and possibly achieving more in those fields.

The high school has been on a seventy-nine minute block for years, and there is certainly a learning curve to any type of change. However, teachers, staff, and students have adjusted well to the new in-school length. While it is currently viewed as a temporary arrangement, the shortened day furthers a more accommodating schedule and aids in maintaining a healthy amount of free time.