Schools in 5 states to add at least 300 hours of classroom time in 2013

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WASHINGTON Open your notebooks and sharpen your pencils. School for thousands of public school students is about to get quite a bit longer.

Five states announced on Monday that they will add at least 300 hours of learning time to the calendar in some schools starting in 2013. In total, education officials expect to provide nearly 6 million more student learning hours next year. Colorado, Connecticut, Massachusetts, New York and Tennessee will take part in the initiative, which is intended to boost student achievement and make U.S. schools more competitive on a global level.

"I'm convinced the kind of results we'll see over the next couple of years I think will compel the country to act in a very different way," said Education Secretary Arne Duncan.

The three-year pilot program will affect almost 20,000 students in 40 schools, with long-term hopes of expanding the program to include additional schools — especially those that serve low-income communities. Schools, working in concert with districts, parents and teachers, will decide whether to make the school day longer, add more days to the school year or both.

"We know that, for low income students, the more they can get practice in vocabulary and comprehension, the more likely it is they're going to be successful not just in literacy, but in math and in science and social studies," New London schools superintendent Nicholas Fischer told WCBS 880 Connecticut Bureau Chief Fran Schneidau.

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A mix of federal, state and district funds will cover the costs of expanded learning time, with the Ford Foundation and the National Center on Time & Learning also chipping in resources. In Massachusetts, the program builds on the state's existing expanded-learning program. In Connecticut, Gov. Dannel Malloy is hailing it as a natural outgrowth of an education reform law the state passed in May that included about $100 million in new funding, much of it to help the neediest schools.

Spending more time in the classroom, education officials said, will give students access to a more well-rounded curriculum that includes arts and music, individualized help for students who fall behind and opportunities to reinforce critical math and science skills. Duncan added in a statement that it will give educators more time to teach children other things like how to play an instrument or computer coding skills.

"That extra time with their teachers or within a structured setting means all the world," said Colorado Gov. John Hickenlooper. "It means it allows them to continue the momentum they had the day before. It means they don't slip back over the summer. It allows them to really deliver."

The National Center on Time and Learning has supported more school hours, as well as Duncan who once suggested schools should be open six or seven days a week and run 11 months a year, according to CBS station WCBS in New York.

The project comes as educators across the U.S. struggle to identify the best ways to strengthen a public education system that many fear has fallen behind other nations. Student testing, teacher evaluations, charter schools and voucher programs join longer school days on the list of reforms that have been put forward with varying degrees of success.

The report from the center, which advocates for extending instruction time, cites research suggesting students who spend more hours learning perform better. One such study, from Harvard economist Roland Fryer, argues that of all the factors affecting educational outcomes, two are the best predictors of success: intensive tutoring and adding at least 300 hours to the standard school calendar.

More classroom time has long been a priority for Duncan, who warned a congressional committee in May 2009 — just months after becoming education secretary — that American students were at a disadvantage compared to their peers in India and China.

"I think this is the kernels of a national movement," he said Monday as he announced the initiative.

But not everyone agrees that shorter school days are to blame. A report last year from the National School Boards Association's Center for Public Education disputed the notion that American schools have fallen behind in classroom time, pointing out that students in high-performing countries like South Korea, Finland and Japan actually spend less time in school than most U.S. students.

The broader push to extend classroom time could also run up against concerns from teachers unions. Longer school days became a major sticking point in a seven-day teachers strike in September in Chicago. Mayor Rahm Emanuel eventually won an extension of the school day but paid the price in other concessions granted to teachers.

Just over 1,000 U.S. schools already operate on expanded schedules, an increase of 53 percent over 2009, according to a report being released Monday in connection with the announcement by the National Center on Time & Learning. The nonprofit group said more schools should follow suit but stressed that expanded learning time isn't the right strategy for every school.

Some of the funds required to add 300 or more hours to the school calendar will come from shifting resources from existing federal programs, making use of the flexibility granted by waivers to No Child Left Behind. All five states taking part in the initiative have received waivers from the Education Department.

[NormaSmith6]

This is without a doubt one of the more ridiculous ideas I have heard.

[Comowhat]

It seems like adding more time to a school day and/or year in order to improve test scores in order to look better when compared to the rest of the world sends the idea that we're not focusing on the students education, but rather their test scores. Haven't we figured out that these tests don't define what one has learned? I believe the education environment needs to change, but not by adding to the time one spends in it. The saddest part is that more time will be added to "core" classes instead of giving students the opportunity for a more well-rounded education that truly reflects the 21st century culture. I could go on, but I'll stop.

[pinkit67]

The most intelligent post i have seen.

[eroteme2]

This should be of benefit. That is, for those students who have a desire to learn. Teachers, of course, will want an increased wage. It would not be surprising if the 300 hours ends up dedicated to additional cultural and sexual studies.

[jamie047]

Boost achievement by firing the liberal brainwashing teachers and professors and putting smarter retirees in their place instead. Meanwhile, real conservatives home school their kids or pursue diplomas and degrees online rather than sending them to the perversion centers that are our public schools and colleges.

[bc-1948]

About time.

[freeamerica31]

It's not how long the kids spends in the classroom but the quality of the time and when a single teacher has too many students those with less ability or those with parents who can't help will be left behind.

[mountainstates1]

Hopefully these schools will raise teachers salaries in accordance with the longer hours. Teachers in my district work well over 40 hours per week and have not had even a cost of living raise in over 5 years. We're going to lose our best and most dedicated until salaries start to reflect other professions.

[Scimajor]

Few people realize that teachers are unpaid during the summer months. The states will have to raise teachers pay as, otherwise it would be like forcing them to work without pay and that's against the law.

Also, the teachers in the school district where my children go to school have also not seen even a cost of living increase in pay for at least 5 years.

Lastly, teachers have almost the lowest salaries of any similar profession and arguably the highest responsibility of any similar profession.

[daddycrc-2009]

My brother lived in a state with yr round schools, kids went 11 months. 1 month off, BUT problem was he had 2 girls in 2 diff schools, they had diff times off, NO family vacation as they couldny go anywhere as the school split the time off so as not to flood the town with to many kids off at 1 time. Lets just say he found another job an moved.

[daddycrc-2009]

First off, Its a BAD idea, I hate a yr round school 11 or 12 month. NOR do I want my daughter going to school at 6 am an getting home at 6 pm. What gets me is 2 to 3 hrs of homework each nt, TEACHERS do your job, Why are the parents doing it for you, There should should be only spelling words sent home to learn each week, an then ony words that people will use in life NOT these words a mile long that NOONE has ever heard of.
Stop teaching the kis to take a da-m test, in Texas its called starrs, when in I was in Florida it was called something else. The teachers spend 90% of their time teaching an stressing kids out over this 1 test,A test that 75% of the teachers that teach the subject cant pass themselves, How can they teach a class if they dont know it. I enjoy spending time with my child in the summer, QUALITY family time, Puts good family memorys for to remember. The people that want kids to go to school 12 hrs a day 6 day a wkl 12 months a yr, don't care about quality family time Those are the ones that would send their kids to boarding school if they could.

[bodettes]

I hate to say this to you, but you should have proof read your comment. Lots of spelling mistakes and some of your comment doesn't make sense. Your children need to be in school as much as possible so that they can overcome what's lacking. My parents had only grade 7 educations and my younger brother and I came out a lot better by staying in school at least until grade 12.

[makemyday2da]

daddycrc - Wow! With your comment, most of which I couldn't understand, your daughter needs to stay in school MUCH longer so she doesn't end up trying to compose a comment like you ATTEMPED to do! What is a "noone"? Is that one of those "mile long" words you're talking about? YOU may hate the idea of year-round school - and it's very obvious! But don't begrudge the young people today who could really use the extra time learning instead of sitting on their rears with a game controller glued to their hands. Seriously, you could use some of this basic education yourself!