School Schedules

Start times. Snow days. Year-round schooling. Block scheduling. Four-day weeks. Get research and insights into school calendars

Explainer

Year-Round Schooling Explained
Get the facts about year-round schooling, including pros and cons, statistics, and key definitions.
Image of a calendar, clock, and a red explanation point.
Misha Shutkevych/iStock/Getty
School & District Management It's Time to Rethink School Schedules, Report Says
School schedules leave teachers little room for collaboration and reflection, according to a new report.
Brenda Iasevoli, February 27, 2017
2 min read
In this 2013 photo, Lewisville Texas High School student Holly Weston studies at home with her digital devices at hand. Officials at schools with programs that encourage students to use devices are now thinking about how to create the right screen-time balance for students.
In this 2013 photo, Lewisville Texas High School student Holly Weston studies at home with her digital devices at hand. Officials at schools with programs that encourage students to use devices are now thinking about how to create the right screen-time balance for students.
Mark Graham for Education Week-File
School & District Management Warning Sounded on Tech Disrupting Student Sleep
Schools are paying renewed attention to researchers' warnings that the "blue light" from mobile devices can shake the sleep patterns of children and teenagers.
Benjamin Herold & Michelle R. Davis, November 29, 2016
4 min read
School & District Management Should School Schedules Shift to 9-to-5?
A new study by the Center for American Progress finds that typical school schedules place hardships on working parents by averaging 29 days off a year excluding summer recess.
Marva Hinton, November 4, 2016
5 min read
Education Maryland State Board Says it Will Expedite Waivers to Post-Labor Day Start Date
Maryland's Republican Gov. Larry Hogan issued a ruling earlier this month that bans schools from starting before Labor Day although they are allowed to get waivers.
Daarel Burnette II, September 30, 2016
1 min read
School & District Management National Nonprofit Wants to Teach All Elementary Students to Play
The national nonprofit Playworks recently announced a major expansion that would bring the organization's program, with its emphasis the importance of recess and playground lessons in cooperation and teamwork, to more elementary schools around the country.
Marva Hinton, September 26, 2016
3 min read
Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan, center, snacks on French fries on the boardwalk in Ocean City, Md., on Aug. 31, where he signed an executive order requiring Maryland public schools to begin after Labor Day starting in 2017.
Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan, center, snacks on French fries on the boardwalk in Ocean City, Md., on Aug. 31, where he signed an executive order requiring Maryland public schools to begin after Labor Day starting in 2017.
Caitlin Faw/Baltimore Sun
School & District Management Post-Labor Day Start Date Sparks Battle in Maryland
An order by the state's governor that classes not begin until after Labor Day starting in 2017-18 has some warning about the impact on summer learning loss and scheduling complications.
Marva Hinton, September 13, 2016
6 min read
School & District Management A Texas School District Plans to Mandate Daily Recess for Elementary Students
An administrator with the Austin Independent School District said providing 30 minutes of daily recess is a part of educating the whole child.
Marva Hinton, September 13, 2016
2 min read
Ja’Malachi Server-Walker, 4, (left), Julian Aguilar-Gasga, 4, (right) and their classmates offer books to be read by teacher Ytashia Harris at the Skelly campus of the Community Action Project, a Head Start center in Tulsa, Okla.
Ja’Malachi Server-Walker, 4, (left), Julian Aguilar-Gasga, 4, (right) and their classmates offer books to be read by teacher Ytashia Harris at the Skelly campus of the Community Action Project, a Head Start center in Tulsa, Okla.
Shane Bevel for Education Week-File
Early Childhood New Head Start Rules Aim to Balance Flexibility, Oversight
Many of the revisions reflect an evolving knowledge of how young children learn, as well as the changing landscape in the field of early education.
Christina A. Samuels, September 13, 2016
4 min read
School & District Management Md. Governor's Post-Labor Day School Start Mandate Sends Districts Scrambling
Starting in the 2017-18 school year, Maryland schools won't be allowed to open before Labor Day and must close no later than June 15.
Marva Hinton, September 2, 2016
1 min read
School & District Management Why Don't More School Libraries Help Students Through Extended Hours?
Keeping school libraries open after the final bell would help students who lack Internet access, but a leading expert says there are several barriers that prevent schools from offering this service.
Marva Hinton, August 17, 2016
3 min read
School & District Management Would Later School Start Times Help Close the Gender Performance Gap?
By analyzing data from a group of schools that have students alternate monthly between morning and afternoon start times, researchers found that boys perform better when classes start later in the day.
Marva Hinton, August 11, 2016
3 min read
School & District Management New Rhode Island Law Mandates Daily School Recess, Calls It a Student's Right
The law passed after parent groups lobbied for it and will require schools to provide 20 consecutive minutes of recess daily for students in kindergarten through 6th grade.
Marva Hinton, July 8, 2016
2 min read
School & District Management Opinion Leading Schools Within an Ecosystem
When a leader thinks of the ecosystem, the leader will not be the voice calling out in the wilderness for a change.
Jill Berkowicz & Ann Myers, June 26, 2016
5 min read
School & District Management Madison District Considers Later School Start Times for Middle School Students
Most middle school students in Madison, Wisc., start class around 7:30 a.m., and the school board is studying a proposal to begin the day later in the hopes of improving learning and health.
Marva Hinton, June 17, 2016
3 min read