You'd think having more classes would require more teachers, not less.

Even if costs were equal with block scheduling and the 6 period schedule, the four period block schedule is not practical. There are classes such as Biology that benefit from a 90 minute block. The extended time gives time for being in the lab etc. However, there are other subjects such as math, which would make more sense being taught in 45 to 60 minute year long classes. Some kind of hybrid schedule seems to be more practical.

mld

Sounds like the exception rather than the rule. Most teachers barely have time to plan at home late at night, let alone freelance bathroom patrol.

Classes would be reduced from 8 to 6. that's the savings.

Do you really think that teachers have too much time to plan? If so, you need to spend more time in schools.

Software development.

You are displaying your ignorance.

My practice as a lawyer is about 50-60% planning for representation, and about 40-50% actual representation.

Journalists and writers have and use wayyyyyyyyy more planning time than teachers. They have a bunch of neat terms to define it as well so it looks like they're actually working, even when they're not. Plus, it's a much easier job.

Are you talking about the one period when they have multiple parent meetings, an IEP meeting, papers to copy, papers to grade, grades to enter in the computer, parent emails to answer, grab a bite to eat, pee and do it all with constant interruptions?

Almost every job has significant planning time. I'll bet your own job is way more than 25% planning time. The exception might be repetitive manufacturing jobs, but even in that case, people in offices somewhere spend 100% of their time planning and refining the manufacturing process, so that those working on the line have explicit instructions for their repetitive actions. To add to that, successful manufacturing companies recognize that those laborers on the line have brains, and take some of their time to get feedback on the process in order to improve it. Even ditch-diggers spend time planning, because whoever drew up the plans didn't have knowledge of what the shovels would actually find, so the ditch-diggers have to spend time figuring out how to actually accomplish the task.

For teachers, as much as the proverbial bean-counters would like to reduce the profession to be like assembly-line production, it doesn't work that way. For the sake of the human children who are supposed to be the recipients of the teaching, I would hope it never does work that way. Certainly if little Susie is having trouble learning a subject, her parents sure as hell aren't going to be pleased if the teacher indicates that time available for figuring out how to help Susie is going to be limited to an hour a day, divided by the total number of students on the teacher's roll, minus all the time required for grading papers, patrolling halls and bathrooms, and such.

We actually mentioned in when we broke this story a day or so before the KNS report. I also noted it on my blog.

My bad, just realized that you meant it hadn't been specifically mentioned here.

Thanks for your comments. There is no school system in Tn. that gets more bang for the buck than Knox County. Most teachers, like my daughter, do a lot more than can be done in regular school hours. Grading papers, tutoring students, meeting with parents, planning the prom etc. are all part of the day of a teacher. They deserve the plan time and a lot more respect than they get from the newspaper and others. Also, Knox County ranks third in the ability to pay teachers out of all the state's school systems. The last time I checked, Knox County ranked about 35th in teacher pay. That is a joke! Knox County needs to do whatever it takes to raise the pay of teachers. We are losing many good teachers to systems that pay more.

Mike Daugherty

Like I said, Sandra, some middle schools delivering four classes daily to students are offering their teachers 1 of 4 class periods per day for planning. (Look for my private message on this subject.)

As to your question generally, though, as to why we might want to afford elementary teachers so much time to attend administrative minutiae is that the diagnostic work performed by teachers at this level is just exceedingly important to students' success in all the grades to follow.

If teachers (and parents, obviously) don't get their students on track at this age level, we'll play hell down the road trying to help a middle school or high school student master the elementary school skills s/he never quite mastered earlier.

Tha's just my personal opinion, not any regurgitation of what the "experts" say, but it's nevertheless why I'm all for giving teachers the time and the tools in the early grades: To preclude crises later.