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Once again you start out by arguing a child care angle. What do they do when school lets out and they're not home from work (or the bar) when their kid gets home?
I'm not an advocate at all for a four day week and believe many of the benefits are overstated.
When my son was in elementary and middle school..the Y had after school care at the school itself.
It was not too expensive and the kids had the gym and playground at the school.
And they gave the kids snacks and kept them until 6pm.
Turn up too many times after 6pm and you were asked to withdraw your kid.
There are many rural districts in Kansas doing this as well. They are saving a ton on transportation.
With the cost of gas, and I see it is going up yet again here in central KS, I could see the savings. The buses in the rural areas travel very far, and any more, the kids are picked up in town also.
We lived 2 blocks from an elementary school. I see them dropping their kids off very early for the "before school program" and breakfast, and then picking them up late after they get off work (after school program). I think parents may be too dependent on the schools caring for their kids these days. Most people make good money for the area, and there are jobs available for those that WANT to work. Sometimes, it just pays better not to work, and qualify for all the extras.
With two parent homes, parents could work different shifts, we did it for years to cover childcare. It was challenging, but as parents, figuring out how to care for our own children was just part of the deal.
Here it seems the kids get a ton of time off: a week for Thanksgiving, 2.5 weeks for Christmas, several "in-service" days, parent teacher conferences, every time a snowflake drops or might drop............ It shows too if you engage with any of the children!
We have a private bus system here that runs in town, and we paid for that years ago for our older son, who was beaten up walking from school (we told him never go on the street), so maybe an opportunity in that area for someone. Opportunities for reliable high school students, co-ops of moms/dads............Charter schools and have them run 5 days a week, parents get together and form co-ops for homeschooling...........
Most in the cities do not understand the challenges in rural areas. Also, some of the kids are coming from farms that can actually benefit from having their kids home for 3 days in a row doing farm work. More than a few kids in rural areas do get jobs also, and 3 days in a row to work part-time vs 2 days, would benefit them. Yeah, rural kids can find constructive ways to spend their time.
There are many rural districts in Kansas doing this as well. They are saving a ton on transportation.
I question "saving a ton on transportation." Eliminating bus transportation one day a week is 20% of the regular transportation budget. There are other things that are part of the entire transportation budget. You still have athletic events and other extracurricular trips such as band, chorus, academic competitions, etc. that will still take place on the day off. Will students have to find their own way to school to meet the activity bus? It sounds like you may be looking at maybe saving 10% of the total transportation cost. In PA, much of that is subsidized by the state.
In New Mexico the governor is currently trying to eliminate 4-day school weeks. I taught at a 4-day school in NM for about 6 years. Selfishly I loved it (could go to the doctor on Friday without a sick day, etc,) but the reality of it is the kids suffer. A lot.
On one hand,
Some rural districts here in New Mexico are truly RURAL.
Many of these rural schools have had 4day school weeks for years.
Many tiny high schools with kids living a long way away from school. Eliminating one day of buildings (often old and expensive to maintain and having school is a cash saver in these little towns).
On the other hand,
"Rural" can take on a lot of meanings. In one town of 10,000 people, virtually all of whom live within ten miles of the schools, they still get Fridays off. That is not "rural" as many see it, though they play that card to save money.
They have "elective days" on Fridays (welding, certificate programs, etc.) Though hardly anyone attends them and therefore have little justification (why not do this during the school day?), the districts play it up as yet another reason to justify the 4 day.
NM is one of the poorest states and one of the lowest education ranked states in the U.S.....the last thing those kids need is more time out of a school building.
Many places have after school programs and the kids that are alone after school, it is only for a short time. Most kids around here get home from school around 4 and most parents get off around 5. Put those young kids home all day alone and see how that works out.
Except for one whole entire day. How much of a savings, not in Teacher salary or benefits, schools are still heated
So in your mind you can leave a child alone all day and "just see how that works", really? You mention schools have after school programs, are you suggesting they have a program like that during the off day? A 1 hour difference a a child being a "latch key kid" and by themselves a whole day are two different things.
1)What actually happens is that hourly wage workers (custodians, maintenance, bus drivers, cafeteria workers) just get paid less.
2)Salaried workers like teachers generally don't get pay cuts. But it lets districts with teacher shortages (due to low pay) continue to pay less because a 4-day work week for salaried teachers is more attractive than a 5-day work week for the same pay.
I'm a teacher and I'd be happy with a 4-day work week for the same pay for selfish reasons. But I don't think for an instant it would be better for the kids.
1) Not true, the school is still open Custodians will be there the same amount of time , bus drivers , etc.
Your assumption is just cut a day , the school day would have to be extended to accommodate the 4 day work week ,you aren't doing a 4 day 8 hour day, won't happen.
2) you don't want those Teachers in your school. Teachers don't want to Teach longer hours, you want a lesson plan for an 8 hour day not a 10 and you're forgetting benefits are based on a 40 hour work week that is another change many won't want.
What actually happens is that hourly wage workers (custodians, maintenance, bus drivers, cafeteria workers) just get paid less.
Salaried workers like teachers generally don't get pay cuts. But it lets districts with teacher shortages (due to low pay) continue to pay less because a 4-day work week for salaried teachers is more attractive than a 5-day work week for the same pay. So they can cast a wider recruiting net and say "we can't pay as much as that neighboring affluent suburban school that has school 5-days a week, but if you come work for us, every weekend will be a 3-day weekend." And there are lots of teachers who will take that tradeoff. And possibly drive further for the opportunity to have a 4-day work week.
I'm a teacher and I'd be happy with a 4-day work week for the same pay for selfish reasons. But I don't think for an instant it would be better for the kids.
What happens is the 5 day 40 hours turns into 4 day 40 hours; Mon-Thur has 10 hour work days.
I had that option in the corporate world ....
Schools will end up serving breakfast, lunch and dinner.
I was a long-term sub in one district that had a 4.5 day schedule. Friday classes are 30 minutes long and they are dismissed at 12:45. They had a policy that teachers had to review the day before a test and you couldn't give tests on Fridays. This had the effect of extending the completion of each chapter or unit an extra couple days. Fridays were typically used for videos or current event activities. Many students in this district went skiing during the winter on Friday afternoons. They brought their skis to school and left them in the cafeteria. The bus to the ski resort left from the school.
Another school district did 4.5 day schedules for students for a few years and eventually went back to a normal 5 day schedule. The purpose of Friday afternoons was to provide technical training to teachers.
Except for one whole entire day. How much of a savings, not in Teacher salary or benefits, schools are still heated
So in your mind you can leave a child alone all day and "just see how that works", really? You mention schools have after school programs, are you suggesting they have a program like that during the off day? A 1 hour difference a a child being a "latch key kid" and by themselves a whole day are two different things.
That is what I said. It is a bad idea for these kids to be left alone all day. Teachers seem to be the ones that don't care about the negative effect on the kids.
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