More Schools Go To 4-Day Week To Cut Costs

[ElNono]

"As schools return to session in South Dakota, more than one-fourth of students in the state will only be in class from Monday through Thursday as budget constraints lead school districts to hack off a day from the school week (http://newsfeed.time.com/2011/08/21/some-south-dakota-schools-cut-costs-by-cutting-a-day/). Larry Johnke, superintendant of the Irene-Wakonda school district, says the change will save his schools more than $50,000 per year. In order to make up for the missing day, schools will add 30 minutes to each of the other four days and shorten the daily lunch break. 'In this financial crisis, we wanted to maintain our core content and vocational program, so we were forced to do this,' says Johnke. Experts say research is scant on the effect of a four-day school week on student performance (http://online.wsj.com/article/NA_WSJ_PUB:SB1000142405274870486930457510412408831 2524.html), but many of the 120 districts that have the shortened schedule nationwide say they've seen students who are less tired and more focused, which has helped raise test scores and attendance (http://www.usatoday.com/news/education/2010-06-04-shorter-school-week_N.htm). Others say that not only did they fail to save a substantial amount of money by being off an extra day, they also saw students struggle because they weren't in class enough and didn't have enough contact with teachers."

[ElNono]

50K a year? What's what, 1/3 of the superintendent salary?

Terrible idea, IMO.

[coyotes_geek]

I'm sure the families with two working parents are thrilled at the prospect of having to figure out what the hell to do with their kids on Fridays.

[ElNono]

I'm sure the families with two working parents are thrilled at the prospect of having to figure out what the hell to do with their kids on Fridays.

Yeah, I was thinking of that too.

[coyotes_geek]

Just seems like a bad idea all the way around, especially for something that doesn't even save all that much money.

[ElNono]

and lol @ the less tired, more focused BS... It's fucking school, not a job

[LnGrrrR]

That happens here a lot in Hawaii due to budget restraints. It's called "Furlough Friday". I don't think most parents are fans.

This article is dated but:
http://www.time.com/time/nation/article/0,8599,1982331,00.html

[Blake]

the entire Irene-Wakonds school district has 300 kids.

if the super has to cut $250k, I wonder what the annual budget is.

[Wild Cobra]

Of course, this is a tactic to get a bond measure passed.

They do it regularly in my county for libraries.

[Blake]

Of course, this is a tactic to get a bond measure passed.

They do it regularly in my county for libraries.

they go back and forth between 4 and 5 day work weeks just to get bond measures passed?

do you have time to post a link?

[Wild Cobra]

they go back and forth between 4 and 5 day work weeks just to get bond measures passed?

do you have time to post a link?
This is an assumption.

I'll bet they have something in the works to be voted on. It's a normal political ploy, hurt the people who vote to extort more from them.

[Blake]

This is an assumption.

I'll bet they have something in the works to be voted on. It's a normal political ploy, hurt the people who vote to extort more from them.

After reading about it and watching the interview with the super, I'll bet they don't.

Just a simple cost cutting measure. nothing more, imo.

[George Gervin's Afro]

After reading about it and watching the interview with the super, I'll bet they don't.

Just a simple cost cutting measure. nothing more, imo.

WC goes on his hunches and regularly makes stuff up... he's usually wrong

[Wild Cobra]

After reading about it and watching the interview with the super, I'll bet they don't.

Just a simple cost cutting measure. nothing more, imo.
It would appear you're right. Did a little digging around, seems the state forced a 6% cut in school funding from state revenues.

[CuckingFunt]

This is an assumption.

Shocking.

[Wild Cobra]

WC goes on his hunches and regularly makes stuff up... he's usually wrong
You're only right in that I will interject opinion that is wrong from time to time.

However, if that's how you want to believe things, who cares but your mother?

[jacobdrj]

A) I love this for the kids. Works better for learning, much like in college. Better for time with parents and kids.

B) Incentive for other jobs to offer 4 day work weeks. For many employers, this is not an option, but there are enough jobs that would benefit from this for the same reasons the kids would do better in school: more family time, more sleep, higher morale.

[ploto]

I'm sure the families with two working parents are thrilled at the prospect of having to figure out what the hell to do with their kids on Fridays.

Guess all the working parents who work for the school district will like it.

[Blake]

Guess all the working parents who work for the school district will like it.

except for the teachers who still have to work a half day on Fridays for students that want tutoring.

[jack sommerset]

I would love for them to change it to 4 days a week. They waste a ton of time doing nothing now as it is and the teachers are way over paid as a whole. Change it I say plus lower the teachers pay by 25%.

[Nbadan]

Lower the teacher pay by 25% your a moron....Jack needs to go spend some time volunteering at a school in a poor district...teacher salaries are the last line of defense between inadequate school funding in Texas for education, thanks Perry, and the complete collapse of our public education system in Texas....which is what these wing-nut politicians and their minions like Jack want anyway so they can get around the rules separating religion and education with Charter schools and turn them into Christian madrases...

[Nbadan]

50K a year? What's what, 1/3 of the superintendent salary?

Terrible idea, IMO.

Not really objective there NONO

[Nbadan]

I'm sure the families with two working parents are thrilled at the prospect of having to figure out what the hell to do with their kids on Fridays.

Not to mention that may times the only real meal these kids will eat are the food they get at school....having the kids at home means more spent on food or the kids don't eat....many poor families will have to chose the latter...

[Nbadan]

and lol @ the less tired, more focused BS... It's fucking school, not a job

Kids have weird sleeping patterns anyway...I'm not sure whether a extra day off would make them more or less tired, but there would be bigger gaps in their learning than there is now without face time with a qualified teacher..

[Nbadan]

A) I love this for the kids. Works better for learning, much like in college. Better for time with parents and kids.

:lol

Many parents don't want extra time with their kids....the kids sit around and play video games all day

[Wild Cobra]

I would love for them to change it to 4 days a week. They waste a ton of time doing nothing now as it is and the teachers are way over paid as a whole. Change it I say plus lower the teachers pay by 25%.
You mean 20%, right?

4/5 = 80%.

[jack sommerset]

You mean 20%, right?

4/5 = 80%.

No, they are overpaid as it. 25% if not more.

[jack sommerset]

Lower the teacher pay by 25% your a moron....Jack needs to go spend some time volunteering at a school in a poor district...teacher salaries are the last line of defense between inadequate school funding in Texas for education, thanks Perry, and the complete collapse of our public education system in Texas....which is what these wing-nut politicians and their minions like Jack want anyway so they can get around the rules separating religion and education with Charter schools and turn them into Christian madrases...

Jack knows public school are like tax-supported prisons. Take away compulsory attendance laws and compulsory school taxes and it's highly likely that most public schools would go out of business. Jack knows the teachers as a whole suck ass, overpaid, not qualified and are not held accountable just like most government workers. Jack is not religious

Why don't you go fuck yourself and call it a day?

[Wild Cobra]

No, they are overpaid as it. 25% if not more.
LOL...

Maybe in your state. I know they are over paid in my state. Just thought you might have done the math wrong as 5/4 is +25%.

[Wild Cobra]

Dan... jack is right.

Why should government employees get better wages and benefits than the majority of the population?

Shouldn't the public servants actually act like servants, instead of elitists?

[jack sommerset]

LOL...

Maybe in your state. I know they are over paid in my state. Just thought you might have done the math wrong as 5/4 is +25%.

I thought I read somewhere Texas had the highest dropout rate in nation.

[Nbadan]

Dan... jack is right.

Why should government employees get better wages and benefits than the majority of the population?

Shouldn't the public servants actually act like servants, instead of elitists?

Jack's an idiot not worth addressing...if you drop teacher salaries, better teachers will just move onto other careers, since they are highly qualified professionals and education will get worse, not better...

[jack sommerset]

Jack's an idiot not worth addressing...if you drop teacher salaries, better teachers will just move onto other careers, since they are highly qualified professionals and education will get worse, not better...

Dumbass, you addressed "jack" a few minutes ago and I wasn't even speaking to you. You're a moron.

Anyone that has any clue whatsoever knows the US education system is shit and throwing more money at it is a waste of time. I say change the format to 4 days a week, save some money, cut some jobs and stop wasting our kids time.

[Nbadan]

Believe it or not, there are ways to discipline kids without corporal punishment that are very effective...

[Wild Cobra]

Jack's an idiot not worth addressing...if you drop teacher salaries, better teachers will just move onto other careers, since they are highly qualified professionals and education will get worse, not better...
Believe as you wish. My opinion is that base salaries need to be lowered, then they can also have a merit pay. That's one think collective bargaining does, is it destroys individual bargaining. If you really want the best, you allow merit pay, for incentive not to be the lowest common denominator.

[Nbadan]

Believe as you wish. My opinion is that base salaries need to be lowered, then they can also have a merit pay. That's one think collective bargaining does, is it destroys individual bargaining. If you really want the best, you allow merit pay, for incentive not to be the lowest common denominator.

Merit pay is stupid...let's say your a very good teacher, are you going to stay at a poor district knowing that your salary could be cut because you just happened to have a year or two, or three, where the kids lacked behavior management or a stable home and your scores suffered because of it? Hell no, your gonna move onto a rich district where the kids don't have all these issues...

[Wild Cobra]

Believe it or not, there are ways to discipline kids without corporal punishment that are very effective...
Then why isn't it done in our schools?

Why do we allow the Sweathogs to run wild in our schools?

quSvXylCv60

[Wild Cobra]

Merit pay is stupid...let's say your a very good teacher, are you going to stay at a poor district knowing that your salary could be cut because you just happened to have a year or two, or three, where the kids lacked behavior management or a stable home and your scores suffered because of it? Hell no, your gonna move onto a rich district where the kids don't have all these issues...
There you go Dan with your lowest common denominator thinking.

[jack sommerset]

I have met so many teachers, not all, but LOTS of teachers that deserve no more pay than what a babysitter should receive. It's a fairytale to think they deserve/earn the type of money,benifits they get. Total joke.

[mingus]

less time in school, more time in front of a t.v. i guess.

[Nbadan]

Then why isn't it done in our schools?

Why do we allow the Sweathogs to run wild in our schools?

quSvXylCv60

Really? you think schools still run like that? if your serious this conversation is over....when you can talk like an adult, we'll talk...

[Wild Cobra]

Really? you think schools still run like that? if your serious this conversation is over....when you can talk like an adult, we'll talk...
LOL... No, I just thought it was funny.

Loved that show when it aired.

[Nbadan]

There you go Dan with your lowest common denominator thinking.

I'm being truthful...why would a good teacher risk part of his/her salary dealing with kids with a bunch or personal/psychological/behavioral issues when he/she can make more not dealing with them?

[jack sommerset]

Schools want students to pass no matter how uneducated they are just so they can keep getting more money from the government. Check out whats happening in Atlanta. Would anyone be surprised if those who are found to be guilty of cheating still keep their jobs or atleast thier pensions/benifits? I wouldn't. They will blame the governemnt and parents, never themselves.

[jack sommerset]

I'm being truthful...why would a good teacher risk part of his/her salary dealing with kids with a bunch or personal/psychological/behavioral issues when he/she can make more not dealing with them?

oxymoron

[ElNono]

Schools want students to pass no matter how uneducated they are just so they can keep getting more money from the government.

You can thank dubya and his No Child Left Behind for that one.
Throwing more money at the problem isn't going to solve it. Having kids skip days in school is not going to solve it either.

[Nbadan]

Schools don't make the curriculum, politicians make the curriculum....that's like nurses making policy for police....it's stupid, and as long as it remains that way it will stay stupid...in Finland, the best education country in the world, educators make curriculum and education policy....teachers are paid to pursue higher degrees and are valued in society more than doctors and most other professions...

[ElNono]

Why should government employees get better wages and benefits than the majority of the population?

Link backing that up?

And is it the government employee fault that they were able to negotiate good wages/benefits, or is it the fault of whoever agreed to those terms?

[Nbadan]

Link backing that up?

And is it the government employee fault that they were able to negotiate good wages/benefits, or is it the fault of whoever agreed to those terms?

He won't be able to back that up....a master's degree with 10-15 years of experience should earn you well into the 60's-70's or more in the private world, in education you'd just be cracking the 50's...

[Wild Cobra]

And is it the government employee fault that they were able to negotiate good wages/benefits, or is it the fault of whoever agreed to those terms?
Bingo...

There is nobody truly on the tax payer side when negotiation with unions over government jobs.

You made my point without knowing it.

[Nbadan]

Bingo...

There is nobody truly on the tax payer side when negotiation with unions over government jobs.

You made my point without knowing it.

Yes there is, the school board...

[LnGrrrR]

Bingo...

There is nobody truly on the tax payer side when negotiation with unions over government jobs.

You made my point without knowing it.

Doesn't the taxpayer have a say in which representatives they choose to elect?

[Nbadan]

Doesn't the taxpayer have a say in which representatives they choose to elect?

...and board members

[ElNono]

Bingo...

There is nobody truly on the tax payer side when negotiation with unions over government jobs.

You made my point without knowing it.

But I didn't. It still isn't the public employee's fault.
If anything, it's the lazy ass taxpayers fault for voting in whoever they vote in.

[Blake]

Not to mention that may times the only real meal these kids will eat are the food they get at school....having the kids at home means more spent on food or the kids don't eat....many poor families will have to chose the latter...

Wonder what they do during summer vacation

[Nbadan]

They don't eat...ask them...

[jack sommerset]

He won't be able to back that up....a master's degree with 10-15 years of experience should earn you well into the 60's-70's or more in the private world, in education you'd just be cracking the 50's...

Those who can, do; those who can't, teach. People who are able to do something well can do that thing for a living, while people who are not able to do anything that well make a living by teaching.

[Nbadan]

Those who can, do; those who can't, teach. People who are able to do something well can do that thing for a living, while people who are not able to do anything that well make a living by teaching.

Your an idiot.....thank god your not a teacher...

[jack sommerset]

You can thank dubya and his No Child Left Behind for that one.
Throwing more money at the problem isn't going to solve it. Having kids skip days in school is not going to solve it either.

You can't be serious, I know you are not serious. Blame Bush is so last year!

[jack sommerset]

Your an idiot.....thank god your not a teacher...

Thank god "you're" not a teacher, idiot.

[Blake]

They don't eat...ask them...

If they haven't eaten all summer long, then they are dead.

[jack sommerset]

Thank god "you're" not a teacher, idiot.

Actually you probably could do just a good as job as what we have now. You should look into it. You don't need a masters to teach.

[ElNono]

You can't be serious, I know you are not serious. Blame Bush is so last year!

I blame Barry too for not getting rid of it. But that's definitely where that started.

[jack sommerset]

I blame Barry too for not getting rid of it. But that's definitely where that started.

No Child Left Behind act started with Bush but the education system has been failing for a long, long time. No way you start with Bush, that's silly.

[ElNono]

No Child Left Behind act started with Bush but the education system has been failing for a long, long time. No way you start with Bush, that's silly.

I said 'for that one', meaning funding based on standard testing, which is what you were whining about when I wrote my reply.

[jack sommerset]

I said 'for that one', meaning funding based on standard testing, which is what you were whining about when I wrote my reply.

You said a few more things......

Whining......You really need to look at what happen in Wisconsin. Those teachers, unions and dems were an embarassment to our nation.

[ElNono]

You said a few more things......

Whining......You really need to look at what happen in Wisconsin. Those teachers, unions and dems were an embarassment to our nation.

The embarrassment is not having the balls to sit at the table and tell them in their faces what you're going to do. At the end of the day, the middle class is always the one taking the hit.

[MannyIsGod]

I would love for them to change it to 4 days a week. They waste a ton of time doing nothing now as it is and the teachers are way over paid as a whole. Change it I say plus lower the teachers pay by 25%.

Work 20% less, make 25% less. Sounds like Jack seems some more schooling in arithmetic.

[ChuckD]

You mean 20%, right?

4/5 = 80%.

Jack ain't nimble, Jack ain't quick, Jack constantly trips over his own dick.

[jack sommerset]

No, they are overpaid as it. 25% if not more.

You two need to pay more attention. Especially Manny. The teachers are overpaid.

[George Gervin's Afro]

You two need to pay more attention. Especially Manny. The teachers are overpaid.

It never ceases to amaze me on what an idiot you are..... teacher raises are small and when the cost of living goes up they lose money annually... you are one dumb motherf*cker

[Wild Cobra]

You two need to pay more attention. Especially Manny. The teachers are overpaid.
I got it with your first explanation. May have to pound the thought into them a few times more before they get it.

[George Gervin's Afro]

I got it with your first explanation. May have to pound the thought into them a few times more before they get it.

no we got it.. he doesn't know what he is talking about.. not surprisingly you fit right in..

[MannyIsGod]

You two need to pay more attention. Especially Manny. The teachers are overpaid.

I pay perfect attention. I can read unlike many of the idiots - you included - here. I don't believe that is what you meant because aside from being a dumb ass you're also a worthless liar.

Durrrr math is hard.

[ElNono]

I got it with your first explanation. May have to pound the thought into them a few times more before they get it.

Repeating the same thing over and over won't make it true.

When you or jack substantiate why 'teachers are overpaid' outside mere opinion or perception, then there won't be any need to repeat anything.

[George Gervin's Afro]

Repeating the same thing over and over won't make it true.

When you or jack substantiate why 'teachers are overpaid' outside mere opinion or perception, then there won't be any need to repeat anything.

I'd guess they would have to tell us what a teacher should be paid...

[boutons_deux]

You pay peanuts, you get monkeys.

Teachers aren't the problem, they're a distraction created by the real criminals.

The financial sector and UCA/VRWC are the killer problems.

[ElNono]

I'd guess they would have to tell us what a teacher should be paid...

Well, I rather see if public vs private teachers/administration officials are competitively paid or not. The figures I recall seeing back when I looked at it, showed that private school teachers/administration officials get paid just as much if not much more in some instances.

[Blake]

I'd guess they would have to tell us what a teacher should be paid...

babysitter money!

[George Gervin's Afro]

babysitter money!

according the resident conservatives you must read jack's post again and again to get it..