<p>Lots of stories in the news these days about colleges and public school districts switching to four-day weeks (or at least considering it) to save on commuting and energy costs.</p>
<p>I know my 6th-grade son would be dancing on the ceiling if it happens here (not likely), and personally, I'd prefer it too (as long as the days that he is in school are a couple hours longer than they are right now). </p>
<p>What's the appeal? I could never homeschool my kid. We'd both be dead on the kitchen floor before Thanksgiving, but a four-day week would offer a bit of a compromise ... more time to spend visiting museums, hiking, etc. ... semi-educational stuff that can get shoved on the back burner as birthday parties and athletic activities invade the weekend. </p>
<p>I think that college students, too, could use those extra free days constructively ... e.g., for internships, paying jobs, research, etc. </p>
<p>But my guess is that the switch to the four-day school week would throw most families into a tailspin, especially those parents who still have five-day/week jobs while the kids have been shunted to the four-day plan.</p>
<p>Is anyone out there living in a community where the four-day school week is already happening? Any unexpected pros or cons?</p>
<p>Four-day college week is the current reality for many if not most college students. That's nothing new. </p>
<p>Four-day school week is something altogether different and likely to be problematic. Because I sure don't have a four-day work week. It would pose a huge daycare issue for those of us who work full time in traditional corporate settings. </p>
<p>I also question the whole idea of less school at a time when American students are lagging behind the rest of the world. If less time at school meant higher quality during the four days, fine. But I think it would end up being simply less school, period. And more time for video games, period.</p>
<p>I don't think the four day school week is equating into LESS school time. Those four days will be longer so that the yearly hours of instruction remain the same (or maybe even more in some cases).</p>
<p>Agreed with Katie...most college students have a four day week as it is. They don't all have the same day off, but neither of my kids had classes on all five days. With decent scheduling, the colleges could compress their schedules into four days (and nights) and eliminate a day. I have to say, I'm not sure how much money they will save because the students will still be there consuming utilities somewhere on the campus.</p>
<p>Re: the work week....with the cost of gas, I can't see a down side to cutting the work week by a day. BUT again...it's robbing from Peter to give to Paul. If I am not at work, I'll have to turn the thermostat up in my house during the day while I'm here instead.</p>
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<p>Agreed with Katie...most college students have a four day week as it is.<<</p>
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<p>Yes, this is commonly the case, though it really depends on the student and the school. But I do think that the four-day week will have a very different feel to it, if the entire college is closed on one extra day ... e.g., if Monday seemed much like Sunday.</p>
<p>The community college I attended almost twenty years ago had a Mon-Thu schedule for all classes. I liked it. The school served a two-county area with many non-traditional commuting students, and saving the cost of commuting one day a week was significant. </p>
<p>I agree, there would be much less benefit for a residential campus to make the switch.</p>
<p>Where my sister taught in a budget-crunched district in Oregon, they switched to a 4-day instructional week with no prep periods on those days for teachers, and the teachers had prep, meetings, professional development, etc. all on the fifth day......she did not like it. It doesn't seem to me like the savings would be that significant - student transportation and school lunch program one day a week, but with the teachers still working on the fifth day, they did not save on heating/lighting.</p>
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I also question the whole idea of less school at a time when American students are lagging behind the rest of the world.
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<p>Not to hijack the thread...but the fact that we're "lagging", IMO, has much less to do with our school system (which, absolutely, could use improvement but isn't the worst thing in the world), and much more to do with the fact that less and less parents are spending time helping their kids know the "basics" before they hit preschool, like many of us now in highschool/just graduating did.</p>
<p>I don't know that I would've liked a 4-day school week. I doubt anything productive would actually get done. By the schools, maybe. But the students, IMO, would just use it as an extra day for the weekend.</p>
<p>My high school had a four day week class schedule - Wednesdays were used for experiential learning - volunteering, internships, working on Capitol Hill. The program is still going strong: The</a> Madeira School: On Campus » Co-Curriculum</p>
<p>Some colleges are trying to move away from the de facto 4day week at some schools where few classes are scheduled on Fridays. Reason? Drinking. We used to have Saturday morning classes in college when I was young and yes, some people stayed sober on Friday night who might not have otherwise. </p>
<p>However, the truth is also that a lot of kids NEED Friday for ECs. This is especially true for sports. Friday night basketball games can't happen if the "away" team members have Friday classes. In fact, about 8-10 years ago now, at least one football player on an Ivy team quit because he wanted to major in a science and a lot of labs met on Friday afternoon. He was allowed to cut them without penalty in the sense that his absence couldn't be penalized, but he concluded that he really was missing a lot by missing all the labs. So, he quit the team rather than switch majors. While games weren't until Saturday, the team bus often left before his labs were scheduled on Fridays. </p>
<p>It's not just varsity athletes who travel--it's the marching band, the ballroom dance team, the robotics team, the chess team, the mock trial team, etc. Profs aren't as nice about these kids cutting class as they are about varsity athletes doing it--mostly because most schools don't have the same sort of protections for non-athletes.</p>
<p>A lot of boarding schools have six days of classes. Half a day on Wednesday and half on Saturday. Sports contests and other ECs are scheduled for Wednesday and Saturday afternoon. </p>
<p>I think that if all high schools switched to four days, there would be even more high school drinking--all those parent-less houses available for unsupervised parties.</p>
<p>While I'm sure four longer days would work for some college and younger kids, it seems to me like many, especially younger, students would have a hard time concentrating during those extra hours that would be tacked on. After 5 or 6 hours in school, productivity seems to really drop off. While this isn't an issue in college, I can't imagine most K-12ers I know concentrating for nine straight hours. Also, longer school days would mean that students would have less time for after school activities, especially sports in the winter time, when it gets dark very early. </p>
<p>I also agree with Jonri - at all ages, unstructured time often ends up being spent in less than desirable ways. Mathmom's school's program seems to kind of address this, as the extra day is still used productively. I don't think there's a perfect solution, but a four-day plan seems a little too problematic for the majority of students.</p>
<p>I hope that the K-12 schools don't go to the four day week. Talk about a nightmare for the working parent. From time to time I have employees ask about working a 4/10 week. Here in CA anyway, the overtime laws are fairly restrictive. I work a lot of 5/10 weeks and even 6/10 weeks and after hour 8 productivity definitely dives without the use of caffeine and sugar at around 4pm.</p>
<p>Our flagship university essentially has a four day week now, but interestingly, is starting to bring back classes on Friday. The reason? As jonri mentioned, the drinking problems on campus. The heavy partying starts on Thursday night and continues throughout the weekend. </p>
<p>"The university is offering incentives to departments to schedule classes on Friday mornings after the results of a recent study suggested that undergrads would drink less the night before. Psychology researchers at the University of Missouri-Columbia found that students who do not have classes on Fridays consume twice as much alcohol on Thursdays as those who do have Friday classes."</p>
<p>Departments at the university are paid $20 for every student enrolled in Friday classes that begin before 10 a.m.</p>
<p>I'm surprised about the statements of 4-day school weeks being very common among universities. It's not the case here (University of Colorado) and it hasn't been as long as my kids have attended here. In fact, I just looked at their fall schedules, and S has 3 classes on Friday and D has 2. Maybe it's the larger size of the school? Here, most all classes are built around either a MWF or TTH schedule.</p>
<p>If I were still attending school, I might like the 4-day week, but I think you'd be pretty exhausted after a full day of attending (and teaching) classes.</p>
<p>Colorado, it's not that schools promote a 4-day week... it's just that the kids -- especially once they're upperclassmen -- don't sign up for Friday classes Which is JUST FINE with professors, by the way :)</p>
<p>Gotcha, Katliamom. I think that my junior D didn't get the message though. But she's not much of a partier and has to get some classes in this fall because she's planning on studying in Sweden this spring. Freshman S will eventually learn!</p>
<p>I'm not a partier, but I don't have class on Fridays this semester. I also don't have class on Mondays. Being free on Friday is great because our football team always travels on Fridays for Saturday games and I am working with the team as a part of the athletic training program. It's nice knowing I won't have to miss class in order to travel.</p>
<p>One thing my dad said going to this type of schedule would be a problem is for sports. I think one school he worked at might have had a 4-day schedule for awhile and on Friday, Saturday, and Sunday the heat and everything was OFF. That eliminates basketball practice on Saturday mornings and potentially games on Friday or Saturday nights.</p>
<p>Several k-12 school districts in Wyoming have had the 4 day week for years now.</p>
<p>Kids miss less school and have fewer classes missed for activities etc. Staffs use the half day on Friday for staff development and curriculum development.</p>
<p>It works well in smaller districts. I am sure Day care can be an issue but it appears this may be better for the kids.</p>
<p>Here is a good read on the 4 day week in k-12. It is a bit dated at 1999 but this is not a new issue for many.</p>
<p>In our college, we only have classes four days a week but it doesn't look any different on Friday than any other day. Lots of staff take Fridays off, but faculty work when they work, and you won't stop them from being in the office on Friday if thats what they like to do. Students live on campus, students meet, work, just don't go to class so they meet--- it looks no different.</p>
<p>My LAC still has classes 5 days a week. Last fall or so, introduced a couple of afternoon classes (!!!) for reasons beyond my knowledge, probably drinking even though we actually drank on Wednesday nights, not Thursdays.</p>
<p>But I've had a four day weekend for 4 semesters in a row because I found that by Thursday night, I'm too exhausted to even want to do my readings for my Friday classes. I generally use Fridays to get small assignments out of the way and just relax. Then I work like crazy on Saturdays and Sundays. For my senior year, it was especially helpful as I liked to do my senior thesis research in very large chunks (read 3-4 hours at a time) and I got a lot of work done.</p>
<p>Now I'm going off to grad school... and I still get to keep my 4 days of classes :) But... there's that parttime job possiblity... sigh. :( We'll see how it goes.</p>
<p>But definitely thumbs up if you know how to be productive.</p>
<p>I work at the College of St. Joseph in Vermont and we have just instituted a "no Friday classes" schedule. While it is partly to save gas for our commuting students, we also see this as a way for students to have more opportunities for jobs, internships, and also enjoy the outdoor recreation that Vermont has to offer. Some student choose to come to college in Vermont so they can ski and snowboard and we want that to also be a convenient option for them.</p>
<p>So far, the students (both returning and new for this Fall) are very happy about the four day class week. Of course, they will be VERY busy on campus Monday through Thursday!</p>
<p>"Not to hijack the thread...but the fact that we're "lagging", IMO, has much less to do with our school system (which, absolutely, could use improvement but isn't the worst thing in the world), and much more to do with the fact that less and less parents are spending time helping their kids know the "basics" before they hit preschool, like many of us now in highschool/just graduating did."</p>
<p>My children started preschool as 3-4 year olds. What "basics" are parents failing to address before that time? I think it's critical that parents spend time with their babies and toddlers, providing opportunities for stimulation and helping them to discover the world, but I think it's equally important to let them discover it on their own via playtime as well as plenty of downtime. </p>
<p>Maybe you can clarify specifically what it is that you see as lacking in today's new parents. I'm not totally understanding the point you're making and don't want to misinterpret.</p>