After long periods of time in the middle of the semester with virtually no additional breaks, three-day weekends are always a much-needed reset for me. Despite only having one extra day of a break, I feel more at ease knowing I have more than two days to finish all of my homework and relax. The day after the long weekend, I feel more motivated and refreshed to start school than I do in other weeks.
As a child, I remember hoping that three-day weekends would become the standard, but I never really believed that could actually become reality. However, this idea has recently gained more traction as companies and school districts in both the U.S. and the U.K. have started testing this schedule. With the possibility of schools adapting to this schedule and looking past simply having free time, what truly are the pros and cons?
The most obvious disadvantage that many may bring up is the time being taken away. Shaving a day off every week of school adds up to six to eight school weeks being cut off from the school year. This is a substantial amount of essential learning that is being removed from a year’s worth of school time. Hypothetically, this should cause a setback on the knowledge a student is learning.
Research from a study led by Stanford University found inconclusive results. Three years after a switch, four-day K-12 school districts showed a slightly lower standard deviation of 0.03-0.09% in proficiency in math and reading during standardized testing. However, this decrease is too insignificant to deem as an irreparable flaw of the new system.
As an additional disadvantage, if the district decides to adopt a four-day week while adhering to the same amount of required school time in a year as we have now, it could lead to both longer classes or a shorter summer break to compensate for the lost time. The ninety-minute classes we have are already considered to be draining. These extended classes will make the school day possibly even more tiring, potentially reducing the productivity of students during class time.
However, a four-day schedule would help students and teachers alike with managing stress and spending more time on extracurriculars.
In a study conducted by RAND Education and Labor, a nonprofit organization dedicated to finding solutions to social health problems, students on a four-day week system were reported to have, on average, three-and-a-half to four more hours of free time. Students can use this additional time to finish homework and participate in hobbies. Not only that, but a shorter school week could help students spend more time resting and spending time with family. This change could benefit the mental health of many students and teachers, setting a precedent on preventing fatigue and burnout that may result from overworking.
Living in the Bay Area, surrounded with competition and expectations of attending Ivy League institutions, I have always felt the pressure to push myself to overachieve and take up as many responsibilities as I can. I often feel exhausted and dread waking up in the morning, knowing I have another day ahead of me. The benefits that could come because of a three-day weekend would not only help me, but other students I see struggling with similar issues.
There are many nuances to the idea of a four-day week that come with its own benefits and complications. However, if this switch can mainly be helpful to students without seeing a notable drop in performance, then there should be no hesitation in opting to experiment with a four-day schedule at Aragon. With burnout and pressure to adapt to the “workaholic culture,” it is important to realize the positive impact an extra day of rest can potentially have on thousands of students.
