The Algoma District School Board (ADSB) has informed SooToday it will return to its traditional one lunch hour and two recess period format at its elementary schools in the coming 2019-2020 school year.
The board introduced a ‘balanced school day’ schedule at some of its elementary schools in 2004-2005, the schedule consisting of three 100-minute blocks of learning time, divided by morning and afternoon nutrition and exercise breaks for students of 40 to 50 minutes each.
The balanced school day move was originally initiated by the ADSB at Greenwood, Parkland, Pinewood and River View Public Schools to provide more physical activity and mental breaks for students and staff, also allowing more lesson prep time for teachers.
“We are returning to a ‘traditional’ day, meaning one lunch hour and two recesses, for a variety of reasons,” stated Lucia Reece, ADSB director of education, in an email to SooToday.
“It was always understood there was to be no increase in costs for supervision. (But) we recognized...that our costs increased, primarily due to changes in supervision in collective agreements over several years. Additionally, from an operations perspective, it has been extremely difficult to have staff work and/or travel between sites, since not all schools are on a balanced day, particularly for our occasional/casual staff,” Reece wrote.
The change back to a traditional schedule will not affect school day start or finish times.
Reece emphasized the move will not affect quality of education, writing "literacy blocks are well established and can be conducted in slightly less time...almost all of our professional learning is being conducted during instructional time."
“As we still require noon hour assistants over lunch hour, there could be a small decrease in hours for some supervisors and it is important to note that not all ADSB schools were on a balanced day. Also, while there is one longer lunch break, students are always welcome to access a snack/food during the morning and afternoon recesses too, which also supports a healthy eating style of eating more often, but smaller amounts to fuel the brain and body,” Reece stated.
Meanwhile, the Huron-Superior Catholic District School Board (H-SCDSB), which introduced the balanced school day schedule to some of its elementary schools in 2003, is keeping the balanced school day in some schools and will be expanding it to other schools in its system.
“H-SCDSB currently has several schools that currently adhere to a balanced day schedule: St. Mary’s French Immersion in Sault Ste. Marie, Our Lady of Lourdes in Elliot Lake, and Sacred Heart in Espanola. Each of these schools will continue to adhere to this schedule next year. In addition, both St. Basil in Sault Ste. Marie and Our Lady of Fatima in Elliot Lake will be moving to a balanced day schedule next September,” wrote Rose Burton Spohn, H-SCDSB director of education, in an email reply to SooToday Wednesday.