This study examined the impact of the Lighthouse program, a school-based, after-school remediation program in the Chicago Public Schools, on student academic achievement. The Lighthouse program included an extra hour of instructional time and an hour of recreational time. Between the two activities, students received a healthy late afternoon meal.…

Argues that political debates over the influence of Christian fundamentalism or secular humanism on school curriculum often overshadow the real deficiencies in public school education in the United States, such as 6-hour school days and 180-day school years, which deprive American children of the learning opportunities they need to compete in the…

Findings of a study that investigated the impact of a 4-day school week in an Idaho suburban school district (Shelley School District) are presented in this paper. Data were derived from: (1) surveys of all district stakeholders, which included 2,039 K-12 students, 492 parents, 103 teachers, and 85 support staff; (2) a comparison of…

Our children deserve an education that fully prepares them for the future--success in college, the workforce and a healthy, fulfilled life. The Massachusetts Expanded Learning Time (ELT) Initiative is redesigning and expanding the school schedule to offer children new learning and enrichment opportunities. With state resources, participating…

Provides background and reviews research for "time-on-task" oriented approaches to instructional effectiveness. Following an examination of four possible approaches to increasing a student's active learning time, the author cautions that the relationship of time to learning is a complex one involving a number of variables. (JBM)

This booklet is part of a series of reports on "hot topics" in education. It explores alternative school schedules as ways to make education be the best it can for all students. Block scheduling, 4-day school weeks, and year-round education are alternative scheduling methods that generate interest in schools in the northwestern United…

The National Education Commission on Time and Learning reported that "The time available in a uniform six-hour day and a 180-day year is the unacknowledged design flaw in American education." Since then, varied initiatives have been tried to meet its recommendation that "American students must have more time for learning ... not to do more of the…

One of the most intractable problems facing urban schools is the low performance of middle school-aged children. This is particularly true for the 13,360 students who attend the Baltimore City Public School System's (BCPSS) traditional middle schools, which serve only 6th, 7th, and 8th grade students. Not one of these 21 middle schools met…

A study was conducted to determine how the length of the school day affects the academic achievement of kindergarten children who are deficient in readiness skill development (low performance in auditory memory, rhyming, letter recognition, visual matching, school language and listening, and quantitative language as measured by the Metropolitan…

The connection between length of school day and time allocated to 10 school subjects and scores for grade 6 in reading, writing, and mathematics was studied for 1,030 schools in the 1982 California Assessment Program. More time for science and mathematics and a longer school day correlated with higher test scores in all subjects. (SLD)

This analysis reviews the data on two types of extended school programs--those that extend the number of hours per day students spend in school, and those that extend the school year. Proponents of extending the school day or the school year frequently cite examples from outside the United States, where the average school year is often longer, and…

This document explores ways in which time can be used as an education resource. It opens with an overview of studies that indicate that American students trail their counterparts in other leading industrialized nations in academic achievement. It discusses research on the relationship between time and learning, explores the limitations of existing…

Describes the Nativity Mission Center, a nonsectarian school for Latino boys in Manhattan, New York, which provides extended-day, extended-year education and strong graduate support for students who complete eighth grade and enter high school. Over 80 percent of graduates complete high school, 75 percent enter college, and 37 percent graduate with…

Much continues to be written about the failure of U.S. schools to provide a quality education for at-risk urban students. Private Nativity model schools have been instituted in response to the need to provide quality education at the middle school level for such students. As the number of these and other alternative middle schools increases, a…

This longitudinal study, which is second in a series of reports on the Detroit Public Schools' Extended Day Kindergarten (EDK) Program, investigated effects of the program on students as they went through elementary school. Participants were randomly selected groups of students who were provided EDK experiences and, for comparison purposes,…