Prompt Cast
Impact of Four-Day School Weeks on Teacher Retention and Student Achievement
TLDR Some school districts are switching to four-day school weeks to retain teachers, but this change can lead to negative impacts on students such as increased juvenile crime rates and decreased academic achievement in subjects like math and reading. Lengthening the other four school days by at least an hour can help mitigate these negative effects.
Timestamped Summary
00:00
A school district in Missouri struggled with teacher retention due to low pay, leading to failed attempts to increase taxes for higher salaries.
03:18
Some school districts have switched to four-day school weeks to retain teachers, allowing them to have Mondays off while maintaining their salary.
07:34
Parents like Jessica face unexpected expenses and tighter budgets due to the switch to a four-day school week, impacting their ability to provide the same level of experiences for their children, while also highlighting the broader implications of reduced education for communities.
11:07
The history of the four-day school week reveals that early motivations were driven by rural community needs, followed by a wave focused on cost-saving measures during the Great Recession, ultimately leading to the current trend where districts are shifting to this schedule without the expectation of significant financial savings.
14:25
The current trend of shifting to a four-day school week is driven by attracting and retaining teachers in the face of a national teacher shortage, with larger school districts also adopting this schedule despite limited research on its effectiveness.
17:46
The shift to a four-day school week has led to negative impacts on students, including increased juvenile crime rates and decreased academic achievement in subjects like math and reading.
21:14
Lengthening the other four school days by at least an hour and maintaining a baseline of 31 hours of instruction per week can mitigate the negative impact of a four-day school week on student achievement.
24:34
The spread of four-day school weeks among districts can lead to a loss of competitive advantage for schools, shifting teacher preferences from school schedules to monetary benefits.
