Block Schedules
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Anonymous
Your "study" is from 1996, and no, advocates for block scheduling don't acknowledge that it hurts music programs. I have worked in a MS with a block schedule, and chorus, band and orchestra were all in favor of it, and would not want to go back to a traditional schedule. In addition my sons' experience in their band and orchestra classes in their MS and HS on a block schedule was excellent; award winning bands at all levels (the article mentioned band directors losing class offerings...not true, symphonic, wind ensemble, jazz band (and of course marching) were offered, and there were 3 levels of orchestra as well. |
Anonymous
Again, this completely depends on the kind of block schedule used. If you want to play the academic research game, you'll lose. See e.g. Heffner, C.J. (2007). The impact of high-stakes testing on curriculum, funding, instructional time, and student participation in music programs. (Doctoral Dissertation). Haugland, S.L. (2007). Crowd control: Classroom management and effective teaching for chorus, band, and orchestra. Lanham, MD: Rowman & Littlefield Education. The reality is this is an unproven bell schedule. There isn't much research on it, especially at the middle school, but what little research there was does show it's harmful to achievement -- and music programs. |
Anonymous
Most teachers do NOT like block scheduling. As for 45-minutes, that's optimal music time for middle school. They don't have the attention spans to concentrate on music as a band/orchestra or whatever for 80 minutes. |
Anonymous
well, that all fine and good, but the point is, it works better for the administration to schedule/pay teachers... so THAT's the important thing. Public school isn't really about "what's good for the kids", is it? |
Anonymous
+1 I think the same poster has been defending the block scheduling on this thread. |
Anonymous
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There was a pretty important letter posted to the Arlington Education Matters group on Facebook about the block controversy at Williamsburg MS yesterday. It's a closed group, though, though there are about 1,300 members.
Letter basically said that documents obtained under the Freedom of Information Act point to a lack of "stakeholder buy-in" among parents and teachers. There's no way to link to it, unfortunately. |
Anonymous
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Why, after many, many years, is there so little research on this topic? |
Anonymous
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Block was implemented at the MS where I teach purely to eliminate passing periods. If there are half as many opportunities to be in the hallways, there are half as many opportunities for fights, thefts, vandalism, etc.
It was not done for academic reasons at all. Now that we've had it for 6 or 7 years, science/english/social studies/PE want to keep it. Electives, math, and language can't stand it. It would be amazing if somehow we could pair up classes (math + language) to make a whole block, so kids came to me for the first half of the block, and then swapped to the Spanish teacher for the second half of the block (while I took her kids). The reality is that in a 90 minute block with 25 fidgety 13 year olds, a good 20+ minutes are wasted on time filler "brain breaks" and distractions in an attempt to break up the lesson. I feel like I am a good teacher--never more than 10 minutes of lecture (teach/activity/teach/activity/teach/activity), but even still 90 minutes is too long. The kids are 50/50 on whether they prefer our anchor day or the block days. Arguments in favor of block are avoiding classes they don't like every other day, being able to delay assignments, and carrying less stuff. Arguments in favor of anchor days are less overwhelmed by the amount of material, no time to get bored in classes, and missing a day due to being sick isn't a big deal, because it's less material covered. My algebra students complain that if you are sick on a math day, they feel like there is no chance to ever catch up because we do a new standard (or two or three!) every single block. It's hard :\ |
Anonymous
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The following is a list of comments by Williamsburg Middle School teachers in a survey conducted early last year. I pulled it off the Facebook post I mentioned earlier.
* Not fit for middle school students - too long of a time period * Students lose too much meeting every other day. Been there done that * I abstain! I do not support, nor oppose block scheduling.. Go Chelsea! * Some courses require daily meetings as they are more skill-based than other courses. And skill-based content courses, particularly at the middle school level, need to be practiced daily * Too long of classes for middle school students * Of the choices this was the one to best express my hesistancy. I would suggest, like the backpack initiative, that we actually hold to the bell schedule for one quarter and see what the results are. We've never been on the same page(as teachers and admin) in enforcing the current schedule. Many teachers following their own ideas and there is no visable admin. support in the hallways during transition times(not that I've seen...). Let's please try to make the current schedule work and then go from there. But it must be a very obvious school-wide initiative with strong admin support. I suggest we try this for the remainder of the school year with a commitee looking at the results. We are a very successful school, one of the highest rated in the state...let's not throw the baby out with the bath water. * I've done an A/B schedule, and it doesn't work for this age group. They forget materials and can't remember from one day to next. Also, holidays create extra long periods of time with no exposure. * Students need math every day. I have taught using a block schedule before (for 5+ years) and for mathematics it is very difficult for students to learn multi-step problem solving when they only practice it twice a week or 3 times a week. Students need a little bit of math every day to master the calculations and the methods for solving. The block schedule is also very difficult for 12 year olds as far as organization is concerned. * Attention span of our students is short enough in a class period of 43 minutes; I believe it would be difficult to keep their attention during longer blocks. Additionally, I believe the students do better when they meet every day for a class. I would like more information about how a proposed block schedule would be implemented: what woulod be the advantages, what are the additional impacts, how long would the blocks be ... can there be a trial period... * Seeing students of this age every other day (or every fourth or fifth day with weather) is not helpful for student retention. I have many years of teaching experience in a block schedule - my conclusion is that it is certainly not better overall, and at times can be worse than a traditional schedule; it just seems to be another way to do the same thing (more "gimmicky" than anything else). What would be gained by switching? How many students would benefit? How will these gains be measured? These questions, to my knowledge, have never been answered in the APS discussions of block over the last several years. * not good for middle school students * I think we should preserve the traditional 45 minute period. The current class time is an appropriate amount of time for a student of this age to focus on a particular subject for one dayanything more than this time span will result in attention and retention loss. I think that it is APS’s responsibility to either add more space or more teachers to address the problem. Don’t put it on the kids. We would be pushing them in a trailer and sticking them on the block, because it is what works best for the school/county. One of the reasons this went down in a ‘ball of flames’ before was because it was not data driven and the parents saw through it. The best data for BS is at the college or upper high school level. New data is clear that when BS is applied to younger students is detrimental to their education. * I am familiar with block schedule, having worked with it in schools in Arlington. For classes that require consistent participation, practice, and concentration like theatre, band and some other electives, block schedule is not as effective as daily repetition. 1. Students have trouble sitting still for extended periods (please see this article: https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/answer-sheet/wp/2014/12/03/a-therapist-goes-to-middleschool- and-tries-to-sit-still-and-focus-she-cant-neither-can-the-kids/) 2. ESOL students need focused English language training everyday, and I worry that block scheduling will not provide that. 2. Kids need to move. The lack of physical activity at recess every day is already hampered by the iPads in the cafeteria. 3. One absence puts a student at a major disadvantage upon their return. 4. Some (most) SPED and HILT students do not have the endurance to sustain engagement for a full 90 minute class. I only have anecdotal evidence based on personal observation, but I feel these particular students would suffer as a result of block scheduling. |
Anonymous
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I'd heard good things about the principal before this; it really bothers me that he is choosing to mow right over the very reasonable objections made by teachers and parents.
He used to teach high school. I wonder if he's not fully aware of the pronounced differences between 6th graders and 9th graders. Those three years really matter. |
Anonymous
So, it seems it is a done deal now? Why did the thread get created, if it is a done deal? Is there some hope that the Facebook group members can change what appears to be at least a year of trying it? |
Anonymous
I'm the OP and don't live in Arlington. I just wanted to have a thread where people discussed the pros and cons to use both in Arlington and other jurisdictions. |
Anonymous
What school? |
Anonymous
I don't know, that parent is definitely starting to sound a little fanatical about it. I get that he's upset and has invested a lot of time, but it all seems a little over-the-top, both the letter and his posts/comment responses on Facebook. As a parent who doesn't fully understand the pros and cons, it's hard to trust the position of someone who now seems totally personally invested in the issue and letting it color his perceptions of other people. |
Anonymous
And I still don't understand how this differs from what is happening at the other middle schools in APS. Don't they all have some form of block scheduling? If it's such a bad idea for the kids of WMS, why isn't it a bad idea generally? What makes the students at WMS different? Why aren't all the schools employing the same schedules? They allegedly have the same curriculum, no? |