The sample schedule is to give an idea of the student week but would not look exactly like this, according to the presentation. For example, the district would not have five academic periods in a row (far right). A split course, accommodating lunch in the middle, has been done elsewhere with success. The "What I Need" period is at the end of each day.
Students will get a special 45 minutes at the end of each day when the Cherry Hill school district moves to a junior high model from the current middle school design next fall.
Each of the three junior high schools will schedule a "WIN" period at 2:15 p.m. as "What I Need" time to ensure that students have time for everything from musical practice to visits with counselors to study hall time, district officials told the Board of Education at a meeting on Tuesday.Â
"I believe deeply in kids having the opportunities to pursue their purpose and passion," Neil Burti, the district director of secondary education, joined by the principals of Cherry Hill's three junior high schools, told the board about plans for the district's sixth to eighth graders.
The WIN period also will mean students will lose less instructional time to extra-curricular activities because they will not be pulled out of class, he said. Assemblies and guest speakers also would be scheduled during the WIN period.
Board member Miriam Stern asked the educators why they scheduled WIN at the end of the day. Scheduling WIN at the beginning of the day was considered, but at times getting to school on time can be a challenge for some students, one of the principals said. WIN is being viewed as "a breather at the end of the day," said a principal.
A committee of educators from the district designed the junior high model and began by agreeing there were "non-negotiables," including academic instructional time and specialized programs, music programs, athletic programs, clubs and activities and Social Emotional Learning that includes character building, Burti said.
Cherry Hill schools decided to switch to a junior high plan to save $3.7 million in the upcoming budget, Superintendent Kwame Morton told the board in March.
District parents have expressed concerns about the move, Burti and board members acknowledged at the meeting.
"I know that there is a lot of stress in the community about what this is going to look like," said board member Renee Cherfane.Â
Board member Kimberly Gallagher added: "I've heard a lot of chatter from parents. How are you...dispelling any concerns form parents?"
Burti responded that in many families there is angst over the move from elementary to junior high, just as there is with the move from junior high to high school and high school to college.Â
The district's transition has made the transition more complex, but in a short period of time it will seem the way we always have done business, he added.
Educators have met with parents this week to discuss the junior high plan. New student (rising sixth graders) orientation is scheduled for Beck and Carusi junior highs on August 20 and at Rosa on August 21.
A goal of the junior high model will be to better prepare eighth graders to make the change from junior high to high school, Burti explained.
"One of the things we hear frequently from our high school colleagues is that when our eighth graders transition up they're not ready for some of the independence that accompanies that transition to high school," Burti said.
Another goal has been to reduce the sizes of some of the coming year's junior high classes.
"In some cases, we had class sizes at the middle level that were 35 or even north of 35," Burti said.
Burti and the three junior high principals showed a sample schedule, cautioning that it is a work in progress and in some instances does not reflect actual schedules, such as having five academic classes in a row.
However, one reality new to the students will be some split class times to accommodate lunch. For example, the sample schedule shows an eighth-grade social studies class that meets for 26 minutes, then goes to lunch for 26 minutes and returns for 26 minutes in class.
Board member Dr. Dean Drizin said he sat on the board committee that was involved with working with the educators to come up with the junior high plan. He said it was his best experience with the board so far.
"This is a great example of the district doing the 'how'," he said.
