https://www.edweek.org/leadership/opinion-time-is-a-schools-most-precious-resource-where-does-it-go/2023/09

A recent article from Ed Week points how teachers feel they don’t have enough time. Last year, the Merrimack College Teacher Survey reported that 29 percent of teachers said they wanted more planning time, 28 percent wanted more actual teaching time, and 17 percent more time to collaborate with colleagues. 

I agree with the article. There never seems to be enough time at school for teachers and students. Students hardly ever finish all what I plan to do in a particular week–and it is not just because students are sometimes lazy and unmotivated. Instead, what gets in the way of accomplishing more are my school devoting hours—if not days–to standardized testing, grade level meetings, pep rallies, activity periods, and fire, evacuation and lock-down drills. Yes, students love a reason to spend less time learning, but for academic achievement and mastery of material, schools should give students as much time in the classroom as possible.

Let’s cut back on time spent on non-essential activities. Given students’ lackluster reading and math scores last year, we must focus on helping students catch up on learning losses suffered during the pandemic.