Douglas School District Nixes Four-Day Week

I like the idea of a four-day school week, but is it a sure-fire way to improve education? The Douglas School District doesn't think so. Their school board was looking into making the switch to four-day school week, but a survey (of the community, I'm assuming) found 2-to-1 opposition to the plan, so they're dropping the issue.

(Wow -- a school board that responds to the popular will? That's a novel concept in some places. ;-) )

Board President Cathy Melendez told the RC Journal that she didn't see enough support from the public or from documented evidence of potential gains in academic achievement or cost savings to justify pursuing the change. District Superintendent Loren Scheer said rural districts may benefit from the four-day week by eliminating one day a week of long bus rides for kids, but Douglas kids only ride 45-50 minutes a day on the bus (this skinny kid will note, however, that even 20 minutes on a bus can sometimes feel like an eternity when you just want to get home, have some cookies, and watch Captain 11). Scheer further argues, "In the end, [the four-day week] doesn't increase student achievement, and it's detrimental to low-income students because they don't get that fifth hot meal during the week" [Kayla Gahagan, "Douglas School District Rejects 4-Day School Week," Rapid City Journal, 2008.01.25].

Now nowhere do the folks in Douglas say the four-day week would make things worse. The RC Journal cites Custer principal Larry Luitjens, who still says the four-day week the Custer schools have gone to works fine. It has saved them money, although not as much as they had expected. And Custer can now focus on scheduling basketball games for Thursdays, Fridays, and Saturday, when they will interfere much less with homework.

But Douglas is taking the very reasonable position of "If it ain't broke, don't fix it." If the four-day school week doesn't offer major benefits, schools shouldn't feel any pressure to switch.