Organizational Structures of Schools

This week, in my Foundations of American Education course, we looked at three different types of organizational structures for schools in America. After looking through documents and other resources on year-round schools, magnet schools, and the daily school schedule, we were asked to answer the following questions:

1. If offered a contract to teach in a year round school and the other with a traditional 10 month calendar - what would you choose? 
If I was offered contracts at both a year round school and a traditional 10 month school, I would choose the contract at the year round school. While there are no studies saying that a year round calendar boosts test scores, there are other numerous benefits to this type of calendar over the standard 10 month calendar. As mentioned in the article "What Research Says About... / Year Round School," there is a loss of learning over the summer months for students, especially for those that are economically disadvantaged. The year round calendar, which has days off sprinkled throughout the year, can help prevent this loss because students are not out of school for three months at a time. This also means that working parents will have to spend less on daycare in the summer and can instead send their children to the enrichment weeks offered at the school and spread out the weeks they have to pay for daycare throughout the year. Studies have found that parents, students, and teachers generally like the year round format. I believe that the more frequent breaks and the smaller need for remediation at the beginning of each year helps morale for teachers and can even be the answer to teacher burnout rates. When I'm a teacher, I want to work with students who are economically disadvantaged, and I believe year round schools is a fantastic way to help those who need it most.

2. What are your thoughts about the magnet school model - is it something school districts should invest resources supporting? 
Magnet schools are free public schools that students can choose to attend. Typically, students apply to the school or enter a random lottery for admission. These schools can have a higher focus on STEM, Fine and Performing Arts, Career and Technical Education, World Languages, or other specific topics that interest the students who apply. Magnet schools provide an opportunity for students of all neighborhoods and socioeconomic backgrounds to come together in their special interests. It can help integrate schools, and the special topics give students an interest in their schooling. However, minority students are still heavily underrepresented in magnet schools, and if a magnet school has tough admissions requirements, it can keep students out who do not have great grades but who may need the special resources and opportunities provided by magnet schools. Magnet schools can also take away resources that non-magnet public schools desperately need in order to survive and thrive.

I believe magnet schools have significant benefits that outweigh the cons of the programs. Magnet schools have higher graduation rates than non-magnet schools. They also have higher teacher and student satisfaction since students are learning about a theme that interests them. According to "What are Magnet Schools?" from Magnet Schools of America, it also increases parent engagement, something that all teachers wish for in their classrooms. I think school districts would benefit from funding magnet schools because student engagement and success is higher in these schools. If more magnet schools were funded and they did not have strict requirements for acceptance into the school, I believe students would be more excited about school and would be motivated to work harder in their schoolwork.

3. In a perfect world - how should the school day be organized for learning? 
Picking the perfect schedule for students is difficult because each student will react differently to traditional, block, or modular schedules. Some students thrive under block scheduling, but when I was a student, block schedules were the bane of my existence. Luckily, I only had to experience this for two years in middle school before I transferred to a school that used a traditional model. The block schedule made it difficult for me to focus because the 90 minute blocks were too long. I lost focus after about 40 minutes, with my mind wandering to other things that seem more important than school to a pre-teen girl. I imagine this would be especially difficult for students who have ADD or ADHD. In high school, my schedule was a traditional schedule. We went to each class for 45 minutes, and I loved it. I knew that I would get to go to classes I enjoyed every single day. However, with block scheduling, I dreaded certain days because I would be in my least favorite classes all day and never get to go to English or Social Studies.

After reading about the Modular Schedule on my class's web page, I cannot say that I fully understand how this type of schedule would work. I think it is one of those things that you need to experience to 100% understand it. However, it seems that this type of schedule uses shortened class schedules as well as the free time given to students to work on projects, seek assistance from teachers, and have additional study time. From what I do understand of it, it appears that this type of schedule would have a lot of benefits for some students. In fact, this might be best for a school that focuses and works with students with certain learning disabilities. It would probably help these students focus better and give them time throughout the day to seek additional help from teachers if they need it.

I do not think there is a magical answer to the way a school day should be organized. I would love to learn more about the modular schedule and observe a school that uses this type of schedule so that I could understand it better. From my reading, I think it has some great benefits for students and it seems to combine the pros of both the traditional and block schedules into one for students.

References

Huebner, T.A. (2010, April). What Research Says About... / Year-Round Schooling, Retrieved June 25, 2017, from http://www.ascd.org/publications/educational_leadership/apr10/vol67/num07/Year-Round_Schooling.aspx

What are Magnet Schools? (2013). Retrieved June 25, 2017, from 

http://www.magnet.edu/about/what-are-magnet-schools