Winter is over, and spring break is past, so we are now in the last trimester of the school year. As a sophomore I’ve seen several new things happening at our school. One of the most significant is the high possibility that we will have a new schedule next year, promoted by the Center for Transformative Teaching and Learning (CTTL). We had a one-week tryout (pilot week) recently, and the new schedule gave us longer class periods. Instead of forty minutes in B days, we have up to sixty minutes “to promote creative teaching and deep learning.” We also have a reduced number of class periods per day, and therefore the number of homework assignments per evening is decreased, which should “promote focus and moderate the rushed tempo of school life.” We also have a new block between the forth and lunch called “office hour” so that students can meet with teachers during the school day “for academic enrichment and healthy socialization.” Last but not least, we have five more minutes in between classes, which replaces break, to provide students transit time between classes and teachers time to finish up their materials without rush and being late for the next class. From students there were praise and commendations. After the pilot week, 62% of high schoolers, 69 % of middle schoolers, and 84% of faculty members took a CTTL survey, giving useful information that will help improve the schedule next year. Through the survey they found that most students and faculty members think the new schedule met their goals to “promote deep learning” (chart 1), “help students focus and moderate the rushed tempo of school life” (chart 2), and “increase the time for students and faculties meeting” (chart 3). And, among all new features, “fewer classes a day”, “fewer homework [assignments] each night”, and “change in class length” are the most popular. Middle school students especially like having study hall and recess added into their schedule. Thus, the CTTL finds that most people prefer the new schedule over the old one.
Chart 1
Chart 2
Chart 3
Chart 4
Kosasky, Robert. “St. Andrew’s & CTTL Introduces New School Schedule.” The Center for Transformative Teaching & Learning, CTTL’s Director and Head of Research Published in the Journal of Mind, Brain & Education, www.thecttl.org/news/2018/2/15/st-andrews-cttl-introduces-new-school-schedule.