Four-Day School Week Adoption in Texas: An Exploration of Typologies and Characteristics

• In Event: Comparing the Old with the New: Exploring 4DSW Adoption and its Effects on Teachers and Staffing

Abstract

Four-day school weeks (4DSW) have been gaining popularity nationwide, most often adopted in rural areas, as is the case in Texas. While many recent studies across the nation have highlighted the student and teacher outcomes related to 4DSW adoption, in this paper we argue that to understand the outcomes related to 4DSW adoption, we first need to understand the various approaches to 4DSW adoption and the ways in which they vary. We begin by exploring the extent of 4DSW adoption in Texas through the collection and investigation of school calendars using document analysis. We quakitatively coded the school calendars for 2024-2025 year to explore typologies and other nuances of 4DSW adoption. Second, we create a dataset of 4DSW school districts using publicly available data to explore the demographic makeup of the districts adopting 4DSW over time. Our findings suggest that two typologies of 4DSW have emerged in Texas, full 4DSW and hybrid 4DSW, and a vast majority of 4DSW school districts utilize their off days for teacher-centered activities, such as professional development and planning time. We also find that a large proportion of 4DSW school districts are primarily rural and small-sized, have a higher proportion of White students and economically disadvantaged students, and lower proportions of students of color and English Learners or Emergent Bilingual students compared to the statewide averages.

Authors

• Fiza Mairaj, University of Houston
  Presenting Author

• Toni Templeton, University of Houston
  Presenting Author

• Neng Priyanti, University of Houston
  Non-Presenting Co-Author