Switching to a year-round schedule at University School on the campus of ETSU is deemed an overall success in the just-released evaluation of the school’s past five years in the program.
According to Dr. Martha Collins, dean of the College of Education, past research on year-round schools has received mixed reviews, but this evaluation included an analysis of both survey data and student performance data.
In addition, attitudinal data collected through surveys given to high school students, parents, teachers, administrators and staff was gathered at the end of the year for five years, starting with the year prior to the academic changeover.
Collins notes the analysis of student performance data used the Tennessee Comprehensive Assessment Program results for grades 3-8 for several cohorts of students and ACT assessment data for high school juniors before and after implementation of the year-round calendar.
The report found student attitudes toward the year-round schedule improved dramatically after implementation, with students overwhelmingly favorable to the switch.
“Students appear pleased with not only the academics, but also with the environment, the activities, the learning process, intersession activities and vacation opportunities. They’re also pleased with their test scores and are motivated to attend class,” she adds.
Plus, parents’ satisfaction is also very high. The findings give evidence that changing from a traditional calendar to a year-round program is “associated with a positive change in student and parent satisfaction levels” with University School.
Teachers also supported the change in format, although they did list a few reservations, such as what happens to athletics in a year-round program, the need for provision of child care during times University School is out, and questions about family vacation times.
ACT assessment results and an analysis of other student outcomes favored students with the year-round schedule. The TCAP results also favored the year-round schedule, but the inconsistent results suggested there may be a lag between implementation of the new schedule and improvement in student performance on the TCAP. “In no case was the implementation of the year-round schedule associated with a meaningful reduction in achievement,” says Dr. Jim McLean, holder of ETSU’s James H. Quillen Chair of Excellence in Teaching and Learning and evaluator of the data for University School.
The evaluation’s conclusion notes the stakeholders favor the change and implementation of the year-round schedule is associated with improved achievement. Even in cases where students didn’t show immediate improvement, there was “no discernable reduction” in achievement.
“Overall, these results combined with the practical advantages of a year-round schedule suggest he change has been beneficial to University School.”
Some advantages expressed include 1) the year-round program allows for continual progress in learning, 2) vacation times are enhanced at varying seasons of the year, and 3) additional enrichment activities offered during intersessions, for example, a European trip last spring, hikes on the Appalachian Trail, and hand-on activities with creek ecology.
The full evaluation report may be accessed on the University School Web site at www.etsu.edu/educator/us/mainlinkpg.html for more information.

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