So How Long Is The School Day Now?

[sunny-dave]

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/education-22202694

It seems to my eye that school days are way shorter than in my youth. Can anyone confirm

a : The bandwidth (ie when they start in the morning until they finish in the afternoon)

b : The contact/lesson hours

For comparison I started at 8:45 every morning, finishing (on average) at around 4:15 each afternoon (earlier on days with academic subjects in the afternoon, later on days with sports).

That was 6 days a week too (and no - I wasn't a boarder).

I would guestimate at 35 forty minute academic lesson periods, plus three afternoons of sport, plus lunchtime activities and some voluntary (yeah, right) community work after school on one day. Plus homework, lots of homework ...

It seems rather more than I see being done now?

[Svejk]

There was a discussion on TV this morning about cutting back on teaching assistants.
A very angry teacher rang up and said "I have to do 2 hour long lessons every morning plus another one every afternoon."
Yes, most indignant she was.
My school days were interminably long. Mooching about the town all day,with nothing to do.
Stressful too, dodging the muchman.

[sunny-dave]

I think the picture I'm getting is that pretty much everyone is actually getting the 25 hours "lesson time", but that the bandwidth of "hours in school" has been reduced - possibly to avoid/reduce the problems of (in)discipline when children are not actually in the classroom?

@jim360 - you are right - the 'extra' in my school week was virtually all physical activity of some sort. Fortunately I loved sport (rugby/hockey in the winter and cricket all summer) - it must have been hell being at my school if you didn't. Mind you I did regard cross-country running with a fierce, unwavering detestation ...

[youngmafbog]

No doubt the bone idle teachers will moan whilst the siletn majority of decent ones will see it as positve.

[ichkeria]

Our son's infant school has a "core time" of 8.50 to 1500, remarkably similar to my own decades-ago secondary school days (8.50 to 15.25)
But that's not counting (voluntary) "Kids Club" in the morning and "Film Club" in the afternoon - essential extra-curricular activity or convenient dumping ground for parents, depending on your point of view

[pink-kittens]

bone idle, lazy teachers?

Well, if that's what you lot think of them, teach your own little darlings yourself, then we'll see just what the teachers do do
They are treated as cheap baby sitters, parents moan and whinge that they have to have their kids at home for 6 weeks of school holidays (those that don't are in the minority),. they chuck their kids into school when they are quite obviously not well enough to go and expect the teachers to deal with them.

I personally think the school day is long enough for my daughter. 08.50 till 15.20 with an hour for lunch and two 15 minute breaks
A teachers job is not done at school end, there is marking and lesson planning to be done to start

When I was at school, we started at 08.45 and finished at 16.30 - long enough in the summer but too long for winter months

[Svejk]

Not a teacher,are you, kitten?

[Lore]

I work in a primary school.
8:50 start
Lessons until 10:45,
15 min break,
Lessons 11:00 - 12pm
12:00 - 1:00
KS1 and FS 1&2 have another 15 min break in the afternoon. KS2 only have morning break. School finishes at 3:15pm.

[boxtops]

our local secondary school has just announced that the school day will end at 2.30 from next term. When I was at secondary school, we started at 915 and finished at 1605 each day.

[tonyav]

When I was at secondary school our hours were 9.00 - 4.00 except Fridays then it was 9.00 - 3.30.