Students at Dunbar organize their lives around schedules, with busy calendars full of sports events, tests, and shifts.
Dunbar uses an alternating schedule of A and B days. However, on Feb. 23, Dunbar’s School-Based Decision Making Council (SBDM) approved a shift to a fixed block schedule for the 26-27 school year. Under this system, Mondays and Wednesdays will be A Days, with Tuesdays and Thursdays as B Days. Fridays will operate on a weekly alternating basis.
Why the switch?
In Dunbar’s Bulldog Bark newsletter, Principal Scott Loschieder explained the reasons for this change. He said this schedule is “more consistent” and “easier for students and families to navigate.”
The fixed schedule is meant to make it easier for students who attend The HILL and other technical schools. It’s also helpful for seniors in EBCE and Co-Op Programs to have more consistent availability for jobs and volunteer opportunities.
Students in Dunbar’s Math, Science, and Technology Center (MSTC) program are required to complete a capstone research project, which includes 360 hours of research. Juniors and seniors leave school early to attend research at various labs. Because of this, the current alternating system can complicate scheduling with their research mentors.
MSTC senior Ellie Cox said, “Planning things at the lab is impossible. How do I explain that I’m free Monday, Wednesday, and Friday one week, but Tuesday and Thursday the next?”
On the other hand, students have expressed concern about homework piling up. Because Thursdays are always B Days and Fridays alternate, students will have back-to-back B Days every other week.
Sophomore Aya Hadi said, “I don’t like how it’s possible to have two B Days in a row. That’s going to be double the homework.”
The faculty is on the fence, but some view it as a promising change.
Mr. Jesse Howell, a science teacher at Dunbar, said, “I’m open-minded. There will be times when there’s a long period between classes, but we’ll see.”
While students are concerned about double B days, he worries about the long gaps in between.
Similarly, Mrs. Amber Faris, Dunbar’s librarian and a member of the school’s SBDM, said, “I do worry about teachers. It puts a lot of pressure on them to have multiple lessons prepared ahead of time with those back-to-back B Days. A and B Day classes get off balance.”
She also expressed concern about Fridays becoming review days or even “throw-away” days. She said, “We don’t have extra days in our schedule to waste.”
Mr. Seth Young, Dunbar’s assessment coordinator and member of the SBDM council, acknowledges that it won’t be an easy transition, but believes it will be worth it in the long term.
“The new schedule will be an adjustment, but it will provide students with many opportunities that they miss out on with our current schedule.”
