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Has anyone else reviewed the proposed bell schedules for WCPSS next year? I personally think starting some elementary schools at 9.30 and ending at 4.00 is a move in the wrong direction. 9.05 to 3.45 is bad (read: late) enough. I see they postponed the vote on it. Anyone else with thoughts on this?
9:30 is very late for elementary schools. I wish they would come up with another solution for this problem. But I heard that not all elem schools start at 9:05 some start at 7:45 AM which is ideal IMO.
Yeah, I guess I should have clarified........but a lot of schools (elem, middle, and high) are being proposed to start 15 minutes later and end 15 minutes later. Doesn't sound like a lot of time until you start looking at how late some will get home because not all buses arrive exactly when the last bell rings.
yeah, we stopped letting our kids ride the bus when the bus started arriving home around 40 minutes--not a typo--after school let out in the afternoon. The school is 2 miles down the road.
Yikes. I remember when I had a 75-minute bus ride way back when. Ick.
Are there shifts being suggested for middle/high school schedules as well? There's a good deal of research in the last ten years or so that has shown adolescents to be biologically wired to stay up late and sleep in. It's not just behavioral that they need to be pulled out of bed with a crowbar; for some kids, having their AP Bio class at 7AM is genuinely counterproductive. On the other hand, elementary kids are naturally wired to go to sleep early and to wake early (as I'm sure we ALL know very well). It would seem to make more sense to adjust schedules in a way that factors in how children of various ages are physiologically programmed. (Just MHO)
Has anyone else reviewed the proposed bell schedules for WCPSS next year? I personally think starting some elementary schools at 9.30 and ending at 4.00 is a move in the wrong direction. 9.05 to 3.45 is bad (read: late) enough. I see they postponed the vote on it. Anyone else with thoughts on this?
Just look at the need to stagger school starting times to keep transportation costs in check. By tiering times you enable buses to make multiple runs and reducing the costs for new buses and drivers. It is an inevitable part of growth and fiscal constraint. You either start elementary schools later or high schools earlier. You can only have students out so early waiting for buses etc etc etc.
Driver starts and completes a high school run and then heads out on their elementary or late middle school route.
Yikes. I remember when I had a 75-minute bus ride way back when. Ick.
Are there shifts being suggested for middle/high school schedules as well? There's a good deal of research in the last ten years or so that has shown adolescents to be biologically wired to stay up late and sleep in. It's not just behavioral that they need to be pulled out of bed with a crowbar; for some kids, having their AP Bio class at 7AM is genuinely counterproductive. On the other hand, elementary kids are naturally wired to go to sleep early and to wake early (as I'm sure we ALL know very well). It would seem to make more sense to adjust schedules in a way that factors in how children of various ages are physiologically programmed. (Just MHO)
Are teachers willing to take pay cuts and benefit cuts to facilitate a more friendly transportation schedule? Are tax payer willing to ante up more for the same noble goal?
There's a good deal of research in the last ten years or so that has shown adolescents to be biologically wired to stay up late and sleep in. It's not just behavioral that they need to be pulled out of bed with a crowbar; for some kids, having their AP Bio class at 7AM is genuinely counterproductive. On the other hand, elementary kids are naturally wired to go to sleep early and to wake early (as I'm sure we ALL know very well). It would seem to make more sense to adjust schedules in a way that factors in how children of various ages are physiologically programmed. (Just MHO)
That's how it's set up in Chapel Hill/Carrboro - the elementary schools start first (7:50 -2:30), then middle (8:20 - 3:10), and the high schools last (8:45 - 3:50).
Quote:
Originally Posted by TuborgP
Are teachers willing to take pay cuts and benefit cuts to facilitate a more friendly transportation schedule? Are tax payer willing to ante up more for the same noble goal?
Seems like it would cost the same - just a mirror image of the more typical schedule.
That's how it's set up in Chapel Hill/Carrboro - the elementary schools start first (7:50 -2:30), then middle (8:20 - 3:10), and the high schools last (8:45 - 3:50).
Seems like it would cost the same - just a mirror image of the more typical schedule.
Tiering cuts down on the number of buses needed and the need for drivers with more buses come more drivers. One hundred schools could be one hundred buses making a single run or more buses making two and perhaps only needing to buy/lease/contract 75 buses. This is a typical problem that accommodates growth as school construction becomes more expensive. Brick and mortar schools require capital construction costs along with the infrastructure to get kids there. As they create nodes for district assignments they will probably factor in transportation costs. Multiple departments will need to discuss where their responsibilities and need for funding overlap.
That's how it's set up in Chapel Hill/Carrboro - the elementary schools start first (7:50 -2:30), then middle (8:20 - 3:10), and the high schools last (8:45 - 3:50).
Seems like it would cost the same - just a mirror image of the more typical schedule.
How much larger is Chapel Hill/Carrboro? This schedule can make a lot of sense the issue becomes the late start time for extracurricular activities especially high school Fall sports as the days start to shorten.
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