Why Texas Schools Are Rethinking the Four-Day Week

One of the biggest trends we've seen in Texas schools lately is the adoption of the four-day school week. We've seen it here in the Amarillo area as well. Some schools adopted the off-Monday model, while others have gone with the off-Friday model.

Obviously, it's something the students and teachers greatly enjoy. Those constant three-day weekends are nice, I'm sure; however, is it coming at a cost?

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How Is It Possible To Have Four-Day Weeks

The way the school systems work is they have a minutes requirement that they need to be in session. That number is 75,600 minutes. That's the amount of time kids have to be in class for the year.

School districts have flexibility in reaching that number, meaning they can choose to go to a four-day week if they choose, as long as they meet the minutes requirement. Some school districts started a bit earlier than usual and end a touch later than most to reach that number.

Why Did Schools Go To A Four Day Week

So what was the premise behind shortening the school week? It was an effort to be able to recruit and retain teachers mainly. Offering constant three-day weekends would be a draw for anyone, and keeping teachers in the classroom has been a tough task these days.

Unfortunately, it doesn't seem to have done what they had hoped. Teacher quality and school climate ratings haven't really changed, leaving school districts to wonder what they can do to entice those teachers to come in and stay.

Four Day Week Schedules Aren't Working

Unfortunately, the four-day week schedule isn't panning out as they'd hoped. While district spending is down just a touch, and they've seen a significant drop in bullying, the rest of the things they're seeing don't outweigh those things.

A couple of the biggest things they've noticed are an increase in juvenile crime and more food insecurity. Both make sense. Give the kids an extra day off from school, and they have a chance to get in more trouble. Food insecurity isn't surprising either, as many rely on those daily meals to help keep the kids fed.

Decline In Student Performance

Unfortunately, it also hasn't been good for educating the kids. Studies are showing in Texas that students aren't retaining the information they're taught as easily, and it's causing school ratings to dip significantly.

In fact, it shows Texas trailing Mississippi in some categories, and Mississippi has traditionally had the worst scores in the country when it comes to education. That is sounding alarms across the state and making many school districts hesitant about moving to or keeping a four-day week.