Colo. schools give high score to 4-day weeks

Aimee Kroneberger’s three daughters didn’t go to school on Fridays this year. And they don’t have to make them up in summer school.

Along with about 1,300 other children in the East Grand school district in the Rocky Mountains west of Denver, the Kroneberger sisters attend classes just four days a week. Kylie, Tracie and Sydnie have longer school days than when they lived in Denver, but every weekend during the school year is a three-day pass.

By Tom Kenworthy, USA TODAY

http://www.usatoday.com/news/nation/2004-06-13-schools-usat_x.htm

"Our family loves it," says Aimee Kroneberger.

Begun as a money-saving experiment in 1982, the four-day school week in the mountain towns of Granby, Fraser and Grand Lake started out as "a shock," says Superintendent Robb Rankin. But now, Rankin says, "it fits in with the lifestyle" of communities that cherish outdoor recreation and extra family time.

A small but growing number of districts across the country are switching to a four-day school schedule, mainly because of financial pressures. A survey conducted last year by the National School Boards Association found 108 districts in 10 states had made the switch.

"It is typically a rural cost-saving measure," says Kathy Christie of the Education Commission of the States, an education policy center headquartered in Denver.

As with most things associated with public education, opinion can be sharply divided on whether the cost savings that come from closing schools one weekday are worth it.

Effect on students

In Colorado’s East Grand district, parents unhappy about the four-day week formed a charter school with a traditional schedule four years ago. Among the concerns was the effect of longer days on children in elementary school.

"Our feeling was that the students lose a full day of instruction if they don’t go to school on the fifth day and that the three-day weekend every week was disruptive to the continuity of the learning process," says Tim Koepke, a mechanical engineer on the Indian Peaks Charter School board. The charter school serves about 50 children in grades K-8.

And, says Koepke, the father of two children in elementary school, "We did not like the notion of the younger kids having to get up so early every day and spend so much time in school."

More than a quarter of Colorado’s 178 school districts – but less than 2% of students – have a four-day schedule. Classes run for 7.5 hours a day for 144 days rather than the traditional six hours a day for 180 days.

"The 52 districts on a four-day week are almost all relatively small districts in rural parts of the state," says Gary Sibigtroth, Colorado’s assistant commissioner of education. Finances, scheduling issues and the rigors of transporting students long distances are key factors, he says.

that transportation and food-service costs can be cut as much as 20%.

But on the crucial issue of how a four-day week affects student achievement, the Colorado study concluded that "the jury is out." "The general feeling is that students do no worse on the four-day week than on the traditional schedule," it said.

There have been no comprehensive studies of how students on four-day schedules fare academically compared with their five-day peers. But anecdotal evidence suggests they usually do as well and sometimes better.

"Our high school staff in particular said they saw students coming to school better prepared, with a better attitude about grades and wanting to excel," says Vern Hagedorn, superintendent of the Hot Springs, S.D., school district that just completed its second year on a four-day schedule.

When the district opted for the new schedule, "Fridays were a concern," Hagedorn says. "I was scared about putting 200 adolescents out on the street on Friday."

More time to study and ski

Like many districts on the four-day schedule, Hot Springs offers tutoring and enrichment programs on Fridays and tries to schedule its athletic contests on the off day. Fridays also give students and parents an opportunity to keep doctors’ and other appointments without missing class time.

For many rural districts where travel times for extracurricular activities can be long, the four-day week cuts down on lost instruction time because athletic events can be scheduled on non-school days.

In Challis, Idaho, for example, "we have to travel 2½ hours to get anywhere, to almost any other school," says Superintendent Bruce Bradberry. After moving to a four-day week this year, and scheduling many sports events on the off day, "we’ve increased our class time tremendously," Bradberry says.

A district survey of parents and students on the experiment found overwhelming support for the new schedule. "At this point it looks like a great success," Bradberry says.

Joshua Carty, a high school sophomore who moved to the East Grand district in August, says the switch to a four-day routine is fine with him, even if he doesn’t get home until 7 p.m. from soccer practice. He gets more time on weekends, and longer class periods can mean getting a head start on homework.

And then there is an advantage unique to East Grand students. Two nearby ski resorts, Winter Park and Sol Vista, offer all students free passes on that fifth day. "I go skiing every Friday," Joshua says.