An Analysis of Time in Schools: A Study of Schools with Expanded Time, Comparing Standardized Test Scores of Public Elementary Schools in High-Poverty Areas

Abstract

The educational field has had many "new" ideas on how to improve student learning in recent years. One such new idea was Expanded School Time, where the time students spend in school is increased. The premise is: more time in schools equals higher educational achievement. The idea has had much praise and much criticism, and is the topic of many debates in the educational field. This researcher set out to determine if student learning is in fact increasing in public elementary schools that are in high-poverty areas throughout the United States. This study looked specifically at public elementary schools that have increased their school day by at least 300 hours per year and are in high-poverty areas within the United States. The schools selected came from an online database that focused specifically on schools with expanded learning time. The schools' standardized test results from the past four years were the data analyzed in this study. The school data was compiled and an AN OVA test was done to determine if there was a change in students test scores over the four-year time period. The study found that there was a change in the schools test data, yet the change was not always positive. The results showed a surprise twist on how data should be considered for future studies that looked into the effectiveness of implementing an Expanded Learning Time program into a school.