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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]A colleague did his dissertation on block vs traditional schedules in VA. All kids take the same SOLs, so it was easy to compare schools across the entire state. He accounted for things like school size, location and percentage of free/reduced meals.

Traditional schedule had significantly higher achievement. [/quote]

Do you have a link to the thesis?[/quote]

It's pointless to debate the research. Very little of it exists for middle schools, and what does exist generally shows no benefit, and possibly some harm for block scheduling in MS. But what works for one school may or may not work for another. So, it's hard to extrapolate too much.

What is clear is if you're going to do this, you need complete buy-in from parents and teachers, who need to be taught how to teach it. Double lectures are a horrible use of block scheduling time...

In terms of subjects, block can be good for science, social studies, and English. It's bad for sequential disciplines like languages and math. Unfortunately in this area, languages and many math classes are taught for high school credit, so if you screw things up by moving kids to block, it has a real-world effect on their academic paths. (Spanish 1, French 1, etc. are taught in 7th grade in many middle schools here.). So, the stakes are kind of high. And generally language and math teachers oppose block scheduling.

Block kills music programs. And it will cut back on the number of minutes in IEPs, etc.[/quote]

I don't think block scheduling kills music programs.  We have one MS kid in orchestra and one HS kid in band.  Both prefer block.  They love not having to drag the instruments to school every day.   And it is more efficient, since so much time in a 47 minute period is spent putting the instruments together, warming up/turning and then taking them apart/ putting them away (especially in band).  The music teachers in our MS say they prefer it, and we have not noticed a drop in participation/ class size  since the move to block for the MS a couple years ago.  In fact, I wish MS DD's orchestra class was smaller.  They have 60+ kids in the highest orchestra for her grade (and there are more than one per grade). [/quote]

They absolutely kill music programs. I'm glad your MS teachers say they prefer it, but they're the exception, not the norm. It may depend on the length of the class period and the type of block schedule used. A block that is 1 hour is very different than one that is 90 minutes. The 90-minute blocks in an A/B block schedule with an anchor day are terrible for music programs because it doesn't allow for daily instruction/practice. This is actually one of the few well-established negative externalities acknowledged about block scheduling. [/quote]

The MS and HS my sons went to, also both had block schedules, and their music teachers (band for one son, orchestra for another) and the music programs at all levels thrived.  In both cases, when block schedules came on board, the music teachers and science teachers were the biggest proponents of block scheduling.  I am not sure where you found info to back up your claim that it is actually "one of the few well established negative...acknowledged..."  Truly, when it came on board in a few MS's and HS's at the same time, all the music teachers were ecstatic due to the issue of trying to get kids in the room, instruments out and tuned, and to actually play/practice in a 40 min-45 minute time-frame had been very difficult.  Students can and should still practice daily, regardless of block scheduling/"traditional" scheduling. I am actually kind of blown away that music teachers in your scenario don't like it.  [/quote]

Yeah. Not getting problem with block for music, either.  You don't lose an elective slot.  If your kid is serious about music they are practicing every day at home as part of homework.  And if it is more for fun and they are blowing off practice,  they are still playing 2-3 times a week for a longer chunk of time, even with no outside practice. They get more actual music instruction in, because so much of the time and the beginning and end of an instrument based class is wasted.  For my band kid who has to assemble, disassemble, tune and clean an instrument each time it is used, probably an extra hour of class time a week on block plus an anchor day (5 x25 minutes vs 25 minutes plus 2x one hour). For certain both my kids' private music teachers prefer them to be on block schedule at school.

Whatever, your issues with block scheduling, music, like science, stands the most to gain. I would love to see a link to block schedules that don't decrease elective periods (drop from 7 to 6 classes) killing music programs.

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