Education Law

More Time = Higher Achievement. An Obvious Answer, But Difficult to Attain

Carl Sandburg once said that ?Time is the coin of your life. It is the only coin you have, and only you can determine how it will be spent. Be careful lest you let other people spend it for you. ? When looking at the impact of time dedicated to learning during the school day and throughout the school year, educators are facing the age-old questions of ?how much is enough?? and "what is the impact?" Two articles from EdWeek explore this issue, but kind of leave BoardBuzz chasing our tail?how much is enough?

A string of winter storms in 2003 hit the state of Maryland pretty hard, and left parent and researcher Dave E. Marcotte curious about how multiple school closing would impact student achievement and test scores. According to Marcotte and an article in EdWeek, the impact was ?quite a lot.? Marcotte and University of Maryland scholar Steven W. Hemelt analyzed 20 years of data from state reading and math exams to find out how unscheduled interruptions, such as snow days or teacher strikes, affect students? test scores. Their findings revealed that the number of 3rd graders who met state proficiency targets in Maryland was 3 percent lower than in years with just five lost school days, which is the average number of closings each year in Maryland. The research pointed out that the ultimate impact for schools was higher than that initial 3 percent would imply: ?more than half the elementary schools that had been singled out by the state over the past 3 years for failing to make adequate progress would have been on target to pass if Mother Nature hadn?t interfered. ?

A second article from Ed Week explored the issue of time in school further, pointing out that ?Since the work of the national education commission that gave birth to the report A Nation at Risk in 1983, one blue-ribbon panel after another has called for expanding learning time as a way to boost student achievement. Yet studies only recently have begun to document the potential impact that a little extra learning time might have in practice. ?

Unfortunately, there?s not a lot of research on what is the best approach for expanding the time spent in school?arguments abound for more school days, longer academic years, various scheduling configurations, and extended day/after-school programs that all profess to be the cure. According to EdWeek, the demand for students ready to compete in this world has ?educators, policymakers, and community activists are adding more learning time to children?s lives. 'This issue is hot right now,' said Bela P. Shah, a senior program associate for after-school initiatives at the National League of Cities? Institute for Youth, Education, and Families. 'There?s a real understanding that we have to do more, and that everyone has to take responsibility for it.'

BoardBuzz is curious to hear what school leaders have heard from their communities regarding ?seat time? and how they?ve made changes to reflect that need. And how will you meet that demand for more time with heightened financial challenges? Silver bullets gladly accepted here?

Full post as published by BoardBuzz: NSBA's Daily Weblog on September 24, 2008 (boomark / email).