LAS VEGAS, Nev. (FOX5) – The incoming superintendent of the Clark County School District is making a big push for extended school days in a bid to boost test scores.
FOX5 heard directly from current and former CCSD teachers on what longer school days would mean for them, as well as students and parents.
One former CCSD teacher says these students are already overworked, which could lead to burnout.
The current teacher is open to the idea, but worries about ripple effects disrupting daily life, including family schedules.
“What data are we going to have to show whether or not this is successful?” In spite of that question, Mojave High School English teacher, Daniel Tillman adds he understands why the idea of a longer school day is being thrown out there.
“It’s a great idea to kind of extend that, make sure that our students are hitting those reading and math proficiency levels that we seem to be missing,” Tillman said.
Incoming CCSD Superintendent, Jhone Ebert says Nevada ranks near the bottom of states when it comes to students spending time in the classroom.
“Our 8th grade students are a year behind in their mathematics from the pandemic. Our 4th grade students are about half a year behind in reading,” Ebert said.
So far, it’s unclear what the extended day would look like, but Ebert says the teachers would be paid for the extra time.
Former CCSD teacher, and current private educator, Brittany Richey has an alternative to even more time spent in the classroom.
“Instead of lengthening the school day, I think it would be better to lower the class sizes. We have some of the highest class sizes in the country and that could be one of the reasons we have such low test scores.”
Advocates say the longer days will increase productivity and retention.
Critics say it could mess with the schedules of working parents, and students. But Richey says they’re already overworked.
“The kids are already in school over six-and-a-half hours a day, and then they usually have a lot of homework. At least an hour of homework,” Richey said. “If you add that up over the course of a week, that’s almost overtime by adult standards.”
Her worry is that more time at school could lead to burnout.
“A longer day doesn’t necessarily guarantee a better learning outcome for the students, especially if the students are already feeling overworked by the end of the day,” Richey said.
At this point, it’s unclear what the extended day would look like in terms of it being a districtwide thing or if it would be certain grade levels that participate.
FOX5 reached out to the Nevada Department of Education for more details.
The incoming superintendent says some of our schools already have extended school days as well as an extended school year.
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