Hennigan pushes plan to lengthen city school day
Tracy Jan and Cristina M. Silva, Globe Staff
Friday, July 1, 2005
Traditional school hours no longer make sense, and Boston's public
schools should lengthen their days to mirror parents' work schedules,
mayoral candidate Maura A. Hennigan said yesterday.
Hennigan proposed extending the day first in 15 schools in the fall of
2006, taking advantage of a new state grant.
Her proposal would add at least two hours to Boston's average 6
1/2-hour school day. She offered the plan months after Governor Mitt
Romney called for extending the school day in two-dozen struggling school
systems, including Boston.
Mayor Thomas M. Menino, who could not be reached for comment, was part
of a Boston coalition that lobbied the Legislature to approve the grant
program meant to help schools plan for longer days.
Hennigan said she's going further than the mayor by proposing that
Boston public schools eventually extend the school day in all 139 schools.
The former Boston teacher said that the extra time would help schools
boost students' academic achievement, keep them out of trouble, and allow
more students to pursue creative and athletic endeavors.
''We need a full day in each and every public school," she said.
Her idea was favored by some parents, but bothered others.
''Academically, I think there is always room to grow and get smarter,
so that means this is a good thing," said Carol Gray, whose daughter
Shynique will be a third-grader at Holland Elementary in Dorchester in the
fall. ''I think it will also give children something to do after school
besides getting into trouble."
But William Greally, whose daughter Maya will be a first-grader this
year at Beethoven Elementary School in West Roxbury, worried that more
hours at school would be difficult for his daughter.
''I am really taken aback at first by this because it seems like it
would be an awful big jump for the early-age kids," he said. ''I don't
think they could handle it."
Greally said he also was concerned about his daughter having less time
to play softball, her favorite sport, he said.
In January, Romney proposed that struggling school systems extend the
day for students in fourth through eighth grades.
In response, the state Senate approved a budget amendment recently that
would earmark $500,000 for planning grants to help schools program longer
school days.
Hennigan said that she hopes all schools, from elementary through high
school, will lengthen their days, but that she wants to start the approach
chiefly in low-performing schools.
No school system in the country has mandated school days much longer
than six hours because of cost, said Chris Gabrieli, a Menino supporter
and chairman of Boston After School & Beyond, a public-private
partnership formed to create after-school opportunities. A mayoral
spokesman had referred comment on Hennigan's proposal to Gabrieli.
''The mayor would love to see every kid in Boston get more hours,"
Gabrieli said. ''The only reason the mayor has not put forth a proposal is
simply cost, and it's a huge leap. It would take help from the state to
make this happen."
Gabrieli said Menino expects the Boston school system to apply for the
planning grant.
Several city schools already have longer days. The James P. Timilty
Middle School in Roxbury has kept students in school until 4 p.m. for 19
years, so they can have longer class periods.
''If the grants are available, we'd consider applying for it," said
Jonathan Palumbo, a School Department spokesman. ''Ideally, we think
lengthening the school day is a good idea, but a very expensive
endeavor."
It would cost approximately $1,300 per student per year to add extra
hours to the school day, Hennigan said, citing a study by an educational
foundation.
Researchers say that longer school days don't necessarily bring higher
student achievement. What matters is the amount of time students spend
learning, they have found.
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