The International Schools Review Forum

Just wondering about this. I've noticed most international schools start at around 7.30 - 8am for pupils - I realise in some places this is because of the temperature but in others it leads to a long day with a finish still around 3pm. Given that most research now indicates that teenagers don't actually perform well in the morning until after 10am, why is this?

ISs own you.

The rational is that if your on the IS site you will be more productive and complete more tasking objectives even if you take an extended amount of time to do so, since your activity options are restricted or limited. ITs leave when they can and hit the night life social scene/families and switch into personal mode. Keep ITs on campus/complex and they will generally continue with business/professional related activities, especially if internet/network access is restricted (you can only play candy crush so long, before you start feeling like there is a better use of your time).
Many ISs have ASP obligations and collaboration (meetings) tasking. It costs an IS nothing to have ITs stare at a white board, even if they scribble three bullet points in brainstorming and answer some emails on the side, its more production than allowing them to leave. There was a study done in Australia on expat Chinese educators that found keeping DTs/ITs 4 hours longer than student release produced 1 hour of effective productivity, thats one hour that cost the ISnothing more than a few coins of electricity.

The typical release time for ITs is closer to 4:00pm, as they either have conference or ASP time after general instructional duties, with the requirement being your arrival of 30 minutes before first period. Upper tier ISs are worse, a 10 hour duty day is not uncommon.

Another issue it traffic. Keeping in school later results in students trying to get home in massive traffic jams. So you start school earlier to avoid them. This is true in many major cities with international schools.

I kind of get the point about teachers - it was a bit of a shock coming from an environment where planning, preparation and marking time were "at a time and place of your choosing" (a direct quote from our contract which is burnt into our brains!)

It's more the justification for kids - traffic jams I know are a problem where I am, and the culture of late nights means the kids are frequently tired at 8am as well as not performing to their best.

This was a shock to the system originally for me! The high school starts at 7am where I am, elementary school later. I'm not a morning person. However despite the longer school times, I still spend less time teaching each day then I did at home, because of more free periods.

There are also a different cultural mentality about education in various regions. Education is taken seriously, students want to learn, want to attend classes, and want to do extra. For them education is hyper competitive, they cant just get on their iPhone the minute school is over and check out with their friends, because in western cultures and regions there will be some sort of safety net or options available to them. Asian cultures can be especially brutal, their whole life hinges on one exam, and they cant just phone it in.

I've heard every reason for international schools operating ten hour days - or even longer. The traffic. The snow. The heat. The 'ethos'. The pollution. The sport. The parents. At the end of the day the truth is very simple: they do it because they can and will take whatever the labour market will bear.

ISs own you.

My school is 7am-1:30pm which isn't too bad. Us teachers have to stay until 3pm, though.

@tedpop

A number of ISs in Northern Europe have early starts and early release times, at around 2:00pm.