After considering the insightful feedback and detailed questions we have received from our community, we have decided to further refine our work and aim to implement the new Master Schedule in the 2020-2021 school year.
As you likely know, the scheduling committee has already been working diligently to develop a hybrid block scheduling model, one that honors both the best of the positive learning environment we have for students at Irvington High School and makes further improvements. Our research shows that the fundamental elements of the proposed master schedule--the I/E (intervention and enrichment) period, the unit (whole school) lunch period, and the hybrid block schedule (a mix of 42 and 77-minute class periods)--are critically important aspects of achieving our goal to offer even better opportunities for our students.
Keeping this goal at the forefront, the Scheduling Committee is excited to build upon their good work thus far. To achieve the best possible results and ensure smooth implementation of these important changes, the high school administration will use the time between now and September 2020 to:
• provide our teachers with additional professional development to help them continue to learn teaching strategies that support 77-minute class periods;
• work with the entire school community to devise detailed solutions regarding seating and access to food for students during unit lunch; and
• involve teachers and students in developing the details of the I/E schedule to help maximize flexibility for students and meet as many needs as possible.
We look forward to seeing you at next week’s parent meetings to further our discussions.
• January 14th at 7:00 PM in the CPR - Parent Tabletop Session
• January 15th at 7:00 PM in the CPR - Parent Q&A Session
• January 16th at 2:00 PM in the CPR - Parent Tabletop Session
We are eager to use these opportunities to hear from you: to collect more input, to answer questions, and to share details. Additionally, I will develop a Monthly Master Schedule feature in my Weekly Blast that will provide consistent updates regarding our progress throughout the year and announce opportunities to attend future meetings and workshops.
Thank you for your understanding and support during this process.
