Why District 203 is proposing schedule changes for high school students
Students at Naperville North and Naperville Central high schools will have longer classes — but a shorter school day — if the school district moves to a block schedule.
Naperville Unit District 203 school board members are considering potential scheduling changes across all grade levels in the district. A formal recommendation will be presented at the Feb. 3 board meeting.
A vote on the changes could come as early as the Feb. 18 board meeting.
The potential change has already caught the attention of students, with one at the most recent school board meeting submitting a petition to keep the current schedule. Ben Berkoff, a junior at Naperville Central High School, noted that 165 of the 175 students he spoke to about block scheduling signed his petition.
“I really think that sticking to the current schedule is in the best interest of our students,” he said.
On Friday, district officials sent out information to parents about the proposed changes. The news immediately drew mixed reactions on social media.
The potential scheduling shift comes after a yearslong process that started in 2018 when district officials began looking at the school day and how to use that time better.
“As we reflect on what school is for, it’s important to remember that school is not just about helping students succeed in school or preparing them for the world we grew up in,” Superintendent Dan Bridges said during a school board presentation last week. “Instead, it’s about equipping them for a future we can’t fully predict.”
District officials said the scheduling changes would help minimize unstructured times — such as passing periods or early arrivals at school due to bus schedules — and provide scheduled time for student support.
Some of the highlights of the proposed schedule include:
• At the high school level, courses would be split into an A/B block schedule with four 85-minute periods each day except Wednesdays, which would serve as an anchor day offering a full schedule in 46-minute class periods. On Tuesdays and Fridays, students would also have two 40-minute back-to-back periods to allow for additional support or student enrichment activities and homeroom.
• Changes to the middle school schedule would feature back-to-back blocks for language arts and math. Science and social studies also would be offered on a flexible A/B block schedule. Wednesdays would serve as an anchor day with slightly shorter class periods to allow for an advisory period. The proposed schedule also would permit the district to increase math instructional time from the 41-minute periods now offered to 53 minutes on Wednesdays, and 60 minutes the rest of the week. A 20-minute period is also included throughout the week for students seeking additional support and enrichment in math or another class.
• At the elementary level, 15 minutes would be added to the school day to help make better use of instructional time. Some of the changes to the schedule include a dedicated homeroom period at the start of the day and increasing morning recess and the afternoon lunch/recess period by five minutes to allow for transition times without impacting classroom time.
• Start times at each level also would change. Elementary school students would start at 7:45 a.m. instead of 8:15 a.m. and end at 2:15 p.m. instead of 2:30 p.m. At the middle school, students would start 50 minutes later at 8:50 and end at 3:40 p.m. instead of 2:50 p.m. The high school day is shortened by 35 minutes, allowing a later start at 8:20 a.m. instead of 7:45 a.m. The high school ending time will remain at 3:10 p.m.
Additional information about the proposed changes can be found on the district’s website. The district also has started a “frequently asked questions” page on its website.