Possibility of 4-day school week stirs conversation

OKLAHOMA CITY (KFOR) — The topic of a four-day school week is making headlines again in Oklahoma.

About a decade ago, hundreds of districts made the switch as a way to save money.

However, one of the state's largest districts, Broken Arrow, says that's not the reason they're considering a shorter school week.

Instead, they say it's about solving a staffing and mental health problem.

There are already a handful of districts that have been operating on four-day school weeks for years.

But, they are much smaller than Broken Arrow, which boasts a population of more than 20,000 students.

From conversations News 4 has had with people, opinions on the schedule shift are mixed, to say the least.

"We also started looking on a national level because none of the local districts that we were looking at that are already doing this are comparative to us, the number of enrollment and size," Tara Thompson, with Broken Arrow School District said.

More than 2,100 school districts in 25 states operate on a four day school week. In Oklahoma, the number is between 50 and 100.

In a recent survey of around 7,500 people in Broken Arrow, 54% of people support a four day school week, while 46% are against it.

District leaders believe the move would help alleviate staffing issues and boost mental health.

Some of the positives News 4 has heard across the board are teacher retention.

"One of the local districts that we talked to have been doing it for a couple of years now, and they indicate that their test scores are up," says Thompson.

However, that wasn't the case for all districts.

"Other studies that we're reading from schools across the nation indicate the opposite," Thompson said. "They've had dips in their testing in those core subject areas."

Those that News 4 has talked with see both the benefits and drawbacks to a four-day week.

"You know, all kids will be like, yay, extra day out, but at the same time, there are other kids who are struggling that need that extra day as well," Jessica Mitchell said.

"They have a lot on their plate," Raven Cornman said. "They are usually learning seven subjects at a time in addition to sports. A lot of them are working part time jobs whenever they enter high school, and therefore I think three days off from school would be highly effective in their recovery process and make them better students and workers overall."

One major concern is how working families would navigate the new schedule, especially in a state where it's already hard enough to find childcare.

"We don't have an answer to that yet," Thompson said.

"I can foresee that being a possible issue," Cornman said. "So, there needs to be adjustments made, perhaps at the state level, parental level and child care services, private and public, that can accommodate the needs of the parents whenever they have that extra day off."

A final decision is expected sometime next year.

If the schedules do change, the district stresses students will still get the state-required 1,080 hours of instruction.