One of the largest complaints from Air Academy students and teachers has been 8 period days, leaving only thirty minutes for each class, forcing students to jump around from class to class, and giving teachers no lesson time. While these days were previously only used to maintain the blue-silver day schedules after snow days, with the switch to hybrid learning, they would become a weekly occurrence.

Thankfully, the frustration did not go unheard and a new plan for Wednesdays was set into motion.

Wednesdays are now work-days and teacher intervention days for students who need it. If students don’t have an assigned intervention, they do not need to log into any online class and can use the time for catching up on homework, a break that students have been pleading for.

But there are questions about how losing a fifth of the school year could affect student productivity, and how teachers cover the curriculum with reduced time.

Junior Nathan Tada thinks this is a positive change.

“I think there will be a big change to assignments and the amount of homework,” Tada continued. “It will be effective for people who can manage their time well but less effective for others.”

In addition to Tada, some large corporations also believe that a shorter week can be more effective if time is used properly. According to Perpetual Guardian, a financial company in New Zealand, who recently switched over to a four-day workweek, productivity has spiked over 20% and stress levels have dropped 7%.

“We need to get more companies to give it a go. They will be surprised at the improvement in their company, their staff, and in their wider community,” said the company CEO Andrew Barnes.

“The biggest concern from an employer point of view is ensuring that the full-time introduction of the policy doesn’t lead to complacency, with the risk that people’s productivity will slip back,” Barker explained, “To guard against this happening, we’ve spent a lot of time making sure every person in every team has their own plan as to how they’re going to maintain and even improve their productivity.”

The key to this schedule being effective seems to be how students use their time.

Junior Logan Mawhiney commented that “students will have a hard time if they treat it like a day off instead of a workday.”

Guest teacher Kimberly Young agreed with this sentiment.

”We expect Wednesdays to be a workday, not a day off. I hope that students will take it seriously and use this time wisely.”

Young also explained the benefits of the intervention time.

”Just a few minutes of individual instruction cleared up many, many questions,” Young continued. ”It also opened the door to getting to know students. I am grateful for this time to increase one-on-one teaching/learning.”

It seems that if the new schedule is properly utilized it could be the answer to student and teacher complaints alike. With more uninterrupted work time, students will be able to finish assignments easier and teachers can provide personal help with students, and an overall lower amount of stress for everyone.