Eugene (KMTR) – Decisions by the Eugene School District 4j mean changes to several schools in Eugene next year.The school board has voted to put its high schools on the same schedule by 2013. The board is turning to parents, teachers and students for input, as to what the new common schedule should look like.
Some high schools will change their schedules this fall.
Those who support this move say it will help students by improving the time they spend in class. And it could change the amount of time teachers spend in class teaching.
Secondary Education Director Laurie Moses says the schedule change is more than just readjusting the start and stop time for school days.
“Right now we have some schools that offer up to seven classes a day, or eight classes over the course of two days, and some offer four or 5 classes a day. The lengths of the courses are very different from site to site, as well as the frequency with which a teacher sees a student,” Moses said.
This spring, the 4-j board will vote on what the new common schedule should entail.
The district as scheduled open meeting for Monday, March 5 and Wednesday, March 7 at the school district headquarters at 200 N. Monroe St. in Eugene. The sessions start at 7 o’clock.
School patrons are also invited to take an online survey on the Eugene 4j Web site.
The school board also approved a pilot program to change the Buena Vista Spanish Immersion School, giving the go-ahead to allow native Spanish-speaking students into the program to learn English. It means about 30 new slots for children in the free and reduced-price lunch programs and those who are learning English.
Some parents are against the change, but Buena Vista's principal, Juan Cuadros, says it lets students practice the language they are learning during non-instructional times like lunch or recess.
“If you have a kiddo who's at the playground, for example, who's a native Spanish speaker and wants to play with a kiddo who's an English speaker, they have more opportunity to communicate. And the English speaker has the opportunity to practice his or her Spanish.”
The pilot program, which starts in the fall, will also help certain kids get to school using a targeted bus system.
To sign up, parents need to fill out a School Choice form by March 23.
