Tue-Fri '4-Day School Week' Expansion... US Schools' Desperate Measure Amid Education Workforce Shortage

Reduction of Weekly School Days from 5 to 4
Measures to Address Labor Shortage... Allowance Provided for Monday Attendance
Some Parents Criticize as "Premature Decision"... Concerns Over Dual-Income Families Also Raised

[Image source=Pixabay]

[Asia Economy Reporter Hwang Sumi] Some cities in the United States plan to introduce a four-day school week. This is to alleviate the severe staffing shortages in the education sector caused by COVID-19. However, some critics argue that this decision was made prematurely without considering the opinions of parents.

On the 16th (local time), according to NBC and other U.S. media, the Independence City Board of Education in Missouri decided to reduce the number of school days per week from five to four starting from the 2023-2024 academic year. The Independence school district, the fifth largest in Missouri, includes 29 schools and about 17,500 students.

The four-day week will apply to all grades from kindergarten through 12th grade, which corresponds to the third year of high school in Korea. Instead of attending school from Tuesday to Friday, students will attend for four days, with each school day extended by 35 minutes. Monday, when there are no classes, will be designated as a self-study day, during which field trips or supplementary classes may be held.

The background for introducing this system is the staffing shortage in education. In the U.S., many teachers left classrooms during the COVID-19 period across both public and private sectors. According to The Wall Street Journal (WSJ), last year, 900,000 teachers in public education and 600,000 in private education resigned. The workload increased not only due to regular teaching but also because of the need to manage COVID-19 prevention measures. As some classes shifted to remote learning, the burden of lesson preparation grew, leading more teachers to change career paths to pursue other jobs, WSJ reported.

In response, school districts introduced the four-day week to address the staffing shortage. Dale Hull, the superintendent, appeared on ABC’s morning news show "Good Morning America" and said, "We are facing a nationwide teacher shortage, and it is also very difficult to find support staff such as school bus drivers."

He added, "Since we began actively promoting the four-day week transition last August, the number of applicants has increased by 40% compared to the same period last year." According to the media, teachers are not required to come to work on Mondays, but if they do, they receive additional pay.

Superintendent Hull stated, "Out of 518 school districts in Missouri, more than 140 have already switched to a four-day week, and in neighboring Colorado, about 70% of school districts operate on a four-day week." He further explained that there has been only one case of a district reverting from a four-day week back to a five-day week in Missouri and Colorado.

While teachers and staff expressed support for this decision, parents showed mixed reactions. Some criticized it as a decision driven by adult interests rather than finding the best solution for students. Anthony Mundane, the only member of the Independence Board of Education who opposed the four-day week, pointed out, "Many parents are upset that the school district made a hasty decision without sufficient consultation. Especially, working couples and single parents have significant concerns."