Board Sets New Hours For Shaw Middle School Will Start, End Earlier Than Others

The Spokane School Board approved a request from Shaw Middle School on Wednesday to change its daily schedule and its calendar.

Shaw became the sixth school in the district to seek a variance from policy or union contract since the board opened the door to such requests.

The board hopes the variances will loosen rules that stand in the way of better teaching and learning.

Students will begin their day at 8:40 a.m., five minutes earlier than other middle schools, and finish their day at 2:45 p.m., 30 minutes earlier.

Staff will have 40 minutes in the morning to meet with parents, students and one another.

In exchange for the daily planning time, the staff agreed to give up so-called “professional planning days” - eight regular school days when students are released two hours early.

The planning days are part of the union’s contract with the district, and are unpopular among some parents who must make special arrangements for their children. They give teachers time to attend workshops and meet with other staff members for planning.

Shaw’s new schedule will meet state time requirements for class offerings, but reduce the time students spend in class.

The state requires schools to provide students at least 990 hours a year of classes. Shaw’s previous schedule provided 1,091 hours. The new schedule will offer 1,032 hours.

The new schedule uses time more efficiently, however.

It eliminates a 25-minute period called “prime time,” which was used for study, reading and club activities.

It also eliminates a separate five-minute homeroom period and five minutes of passing time after homeroom. Now announcements and other housekeeping will take place during the first five minutes of the first-period class.

Students still will have six periods a day of 50 to 55 minutes each.

Four of the five school variance requests approved by the board this year involved shortening the school day.

In March, Garry Middle School received approval to shorten its day by 10 minutes. The school will return to its original schedule for next year however.

In April, Shadle Park and Rogers high schools got the OK to shorten classes by a few minutes each day.

In all cases, teachers wanted more time to plan together.

District policy requires schools to establish a decision-making council before they request a variance.

Now there is a deadline for schools lagging behind in writing charters and developing decision-making councils.

A May 24 memo from Superintendent Gary Livingston and teachers union president Jerry Hopkins directs schools to have “a formal self-governance body in place by June 15, 1997.”

About one-third to one-half of the district’s schools do not yet have a democratic decision-making group that includes parents and staff members.

, DataTimes