Meier cites nine reasons why a longer school day (in Chicago) is the wrong approach:

1. Teachers work longer for less per hour.
2. It presumes that teachers do not have work to do after school.
3. It reduces time available for teacher collaboration.
4. It undermines future trust between potential the mayor, and unions.
5. It's not based on any research
6. It plans on using precious time without prior thought (planning).
7. It's not even a job-saving or job-creating plan.
8. Don't some kids (maybe teachers, too) already have after-school obligations.
9. It is surely unlikely to attract more people into teaching and surely not more willing to stay in the classroom.

Learning: It's About Time

The Teacher Leader and I have written at least a dozen posts on the subject of leaning time. Of the three domains that school staff control--learning time, setting, and instructional methods--learning time, we used to call this time-on-task, has at least as much, if not more, impact on student achievement.

Having said that, a longer school day is not the answer. More learning time is the answer. Some students need more time to learn some subjects. Some students need more time reading, while others would benefit from more math instruction. Some students need a longer school day. Some need a longer school week. Some need a longer school year. Of the three, and extended school year (summer school) for a portion of the students is the most effective.

Learning is a process, a life long process at that. Learning is not a sprint. A longer school day views learning as a "let's get it over with" mentality. A longer school day is about the ABCs--administration by convenience. This is about adult convenience, not student learning.

Why not look at an extended school year through the eyes of a college student. College students go to summer school to get ahead, to catch up, or to remediate. Why not K-12 students?

The other benefit of an extended year for some students is that it sends the message to the student that mastery is not only an expectation, but mastery is a must. "You will keep working "until"--until you master this content event if it takes you more time."

This thinking requires a departure from the "assembly line" thinking of the past and demands that we begin treating each student as an individual learner who needs a customized learning plan.

A customized plan for each child can be done no additional cost. However, it cannot be done at the convenience of the adults. In fact, an individual learning plan is very inconvenient and often complicated, but this approach pays big dividends in relation to increased student achievement, improved student behavior, and happy, energized teachers.