THE PROS:

Following winter break, PHS students found themselves in a school wildly different from the one they had left. Students discovered that they had only half the number of classes each day and a school day which ended almost an hour earlier than before. Also, students had enough time for their assignments, extracurriculars, and friends. Teachers could exercise their creativity to plan engaging lessons. For many students and teachers, this new block schedule was a breath of fresh air, vastly improving student and faculty life at PHS.

Before the block schedule, there were usually daily assignments from each class. With the block schedule, on the other hand, assignments were similar in size, but less frequent. Consequently, there was less homework and grading. Moreover, a buffer of at least two days was provided between assignments, meaning that even if one day was especially busy due to extracurriculars or other assignments, a student always had the cushion of a second day to complete an assignment. Thanks to the block schedule, PHS students became less stressed.

Students and teachers also found that they had more time to finish their homework. With this extra time, teachers were able to catch up on grading past assignments, and students were able to catch up on missed assignments. Teachers were also able to use this time to create lessons that were effective and enjoyable. Though the 77-minute period may have seemed intimidating at first, teachers at PHS succeeded in making it engaging. A longer period allowed for more project-based and student-centered activities. There was enough time for longer class discussions, which were seen throughout many English and World Language classrooms. This method of “self-teaching” has been shown to greatly enhance student comprehension. In science classes, the schedule allowed learning to be more easily geared towards hands-on labs. Now that students could work together with their peers, they found themselves more immersed in their classes. Before the block schedule, Gym Classes could be dull because students only got to do one activity throughout the entire period. During the block schedule, students were able to participate in volleyball, floor hockey, and the fitness center all within one period. The block schedule reinvigorated students’ academics, and made classes more enjoyable.

Perhaps the most cherished part of the block schedule, however, was that Tiger Time was built into every single day, instead of just two days a week. Students used this time to meet up with friends and hang out. Friends that that both play instruments would often jam out together in the band room. Any socialization that was lost due to the altered lunch schedule was more than made up for in Tiger Time. Of course, having this period off every day was also a test in students’ time management. Thankfully, students made good use of the it. Clubs had more frequent meetings and enjoyed better engagement from members, and Students who were struggling or confused in their classes used the time to seek the help they needed. The block schedule was a godsend for students and teachers alike. It was introduced as a preventative measure against COVID-19, but was even more effective as a remedy for stress and boredom, in and out of school. If the school wishes to reduce stress and increase student productivity, it should return to the block schedule. Students and faculty will welcome it with open arms.

THE CONS:

During the few weeks that the block schedule was implemented, my lunch break was a consistent source of stress. Everyday, the bell would ring, and I would make my way to where I ate lunch. I was forced to take careful steps so as to not step on someone’s hand or smush a neatly wrapped sandwich. This was the norm in the crowded 190s hallway — the place I ate lunch while the block schedule was in effect. This scenario was mirrored all over the school. The block schedule, just retired by PHS, was harmful for a number of reasons: It created crowded lunch spaces, separated friends, decreased class time, and resulted in a loss of focus.

You’d think that with only a third of the school eating at once, these three lunch periods would be less concentrated. Unfortunately, that was not the case. There was a very limited amount of spaces where eating lunch was permitted. Consequently, large, maskless groups congregated in small, highly populated areas. Furthermore, because friend groups were often split into different lunch periods, students were eating with people that they had never eaten with prior to the block schedule, increasing the number of possible exposures to COVID-19. Instead of minimizing the problems COVID-19 has created at our school, the block schedule only worsened them. With the return of the normal lunch schedule, this issue will likely become less of a concern as students return to their normal eating places and lunch groups.

Socialization is a very important part of high school, and because many of us are already overburdened with both schoolwork and extracurriculars, spending time with friends is more important than ever. Unfortunately, the block schedule interrupted many students’ social lives. Students were often left in the hallways alone because their friends had different lunch schedules — something I certainly don’t miss now that lunch periods are back to normal.

At first glance, the block schedule might seem to increase overall class time because individual block periods are longer. But this is misleading: Classes end almost 50 minutes earlier than in the normal schedule, which creates an overall decrease in synchronous learning time. Even with longer periods, less learning happens every day.

These excessively long class periods aren’t doing any good for our personal or academic self-improvement, either. It’s pretty obvious that the attention span of teenagers is not long. Spending 77 minutes focusing on one single subject is difficult for many PHS students, myself included. At a certain point, staying productive becomes almost impossible. Taking a mental break from work and difficult tasks is incredibly helpful, in regard to both our well-being and our work ethic. In addition to the strain the block schedule places on students, an even heavier burden is placed on teachers. Teachers are struggling to maintain student engagement during these block periods but are still forced to cover content at a breakneck speed due to reduced instructional time.

Although there are some students and staff who did enjoy the block schedule, it ended up hurting our school in a lot more ways than it helped. The block schedule is counterproductive to the school’s efforts to curb the pandemic, prevents socialization, and places pressures on students and teachers. The termination of the block schedule is for the best, and for the sake of our collective mental and physical health, it should not return.