Why the Amount of Instructional Time Matters: Maximizing Learning for Student Success
In education, the quantity of instructional time plays a crucial role in determining student outcomes. On average, K-12 public schools operate for under seven hours a day, over about 180 days a year, amounting to roughly 1,200 hours annually, and in DC, schools are mandated to have at least 180 instructional days each year, with each day lasting a minimum of six hours.
Instructional time—how long students spend actively learning each day—comes in various forms, including:
Classroom hours: Traditional in-school time spent on direct instruction
Homework and assignments: Learning extended beyond the school day
Extracurricular and extended learning opportunities: After-school programs, tutoring, outdoor learning, field trips, and enrichment activities that complement academic work
A recent study by the Annenberg Institute at Brown University reveals that US schools with the most instructional time offer students, on average, five additional weeks of learning per year compared to those with the least. Over a 12 to 13-year academic career, this additional time amounts to nearly two years’ worth of extra instruction, highlighting the importance of maximizing instructional time in ways that genuinely impact student outcomes.
While the cost-benefit ratio favors adding more instructional time to the school calendar, providing opportunities for teachers to dive deeper into materials and discussions, schools need support in identifying the best ways to utilize additional time to maximize the benefits and avoid burnout. An international randomized control trial in Denmark demonstrated positive student outcomes for adding time to the typical school week, but the true return on investment depended on access to school leader and teacher training to make the best use of that time. In short, researchers found that details matter, and a well-structured strategy with implementation support is necessary to maximize the effectiveness of instructional time.
Understanding the Barriers to Instructional Time
In 2020, the COVID-19 pandemic disrupted traditional learning, and recovery efforts remain underway. While test scores like the DC CAPE have improved slightly, they are still not back to pre-pandemic levels. The quality and quantity of instructional time are valuable tools in pandemic recovery; however, the amount of effective classroom instruction time students receive is influenced by multiple factors that often create barriers to success for both students and teachers.
Financial Costs: Expanding school days or the academic year adds significant financial strain on LEAs. Teachers worry about longer hours without adequate pay, and LEAs must cover increased costs for salaries, facilities, and resources. Though federal relief funds in response to COVID-19 have temporarily eased some burdens, this is not a viable long-term solution.
Chronic Absenteeism: One of the most important factors affecting instructional time is chronic absenteeism, especially for economically disadvantaged students. Frequent absences lead to missed lessons and a widening opportunity gap, particularly in schools serving vulnerable populations. While more instructional time helps, it does not address the core issue of students not being in class to benefit from that time. More time in the day allows teachers more time for fun projects and activities that activate learning and can help kids feel like school is a cool place to be.
Teacher Burnout: Teacher burnout—particularly in economically disadvantaged and historically marginalized communities where educators face additional challenges—significantly impacts instructional time. High teacher absenteeism and turnover rates in schools further add to the challenge, disrupting the consistency of instruction and hampering recovery efforts.
Role of Teacher Quality: Research shows that highly qualified teachers can significantly enhance the impact of increased instructional time on student outcomes. Teachers with strong subject knowledge and effective classroom instructional strategies are better equipped to make the most of the time available.
Classroom Management: Effective classroom management is a skill, and teachers who master it maximize the learning that takes place within the existing structure of the school day. For others, inefficient routines and disruptions eat away at what should be productive and effective classroom instruction. Teachers who struggle with classroom management tend to lose more instructional time than those who run efficient classrooms.
External Factors: Even when students are physically present in school, external factors can significantly reduce the effectiveness of instructional time. Issues like lack of sleep or an unstable home environment can prevent students from fully engaging in their lessons. These challenges disproportionately affect economically disadvantaged students and can undermine the benefits of additional instructional time.
The Impact of Instructional Time on Student Outcomes
Growing research increasingly underscores the significant influence of instructional time on student outcomes, including:
Academic Outcomes: Instructional time can significantly boost students' educational outcomes. In fact, one study found that one additional hour of school per week can increase students' test scores by 0.030 standard deviations. The impact of added time was notably more substantial for students taught by highly qualified teachers, highlighting the importance of quality and effective classroom instructional strategies to maximize the benefit of extra time. A well-structured plan to adjust the daily schedule can help. We reported about the success of KIPP Promise Academy in Ward 7 before the pandemic. Promise utilized a longer school day to add a block of math in the morning and afternoon with a break for teachers to utilize morning exit ticket data to design an afternoon block to immediately address student misconceptions from the morning lesson in small groups.
Attitude Towards Learning: Instructional time doesn't just boost academic scores; it also shapes how students feel about learning. Extended hours offer students and teachers opportunities for deeper exploration and engagement with subjects, enhancing students' positive attitudes toward school subjects.
Personal Development Benefits: Beyond the classroom, more instructional time is linked to significant long-term advantages of increased future wages and career outcomes. The impact extends far beyond immediate academic success, influencing broader social outcomes. More time in school can offer students and teachers additional space to build relationships, which is a key indicator of students’ personal and academic development.
Pandemic Recovery: The COVID-19 pandemic has underscored the importance of instructional time as schools worldwide grapple with learning disruptions. Extended instructional time is proving beneficial for supporting improved student outcomes and reinforcing foundational skills. Research shows that even small increases in the length of the school day—90 minutes or less—lead to positive results.
EK12's Role in Tracking Instructional Time with Data-Driven Tools
Understanding the link between instructional time and student outcomes is essential for educators, parents, and policymakers aiming to enhance learning experiences and drive academic excellence. Still, it isn’t quite as simple as tracking just instructional time.
EmpowerK12’s Bold Improvement Portal dashboards help LEAs navigate the complexities of instructional time management by providing an in-depth look at other relevant metrics, such as attendance, student engagement, and test results. These data points can be utilized as an early warning system to help schools prevent absenteeism and improve attendance, translating to more time in the classroom.
Dr. Tracy White, Chief Executive Officer at Paul Public Charter School, emphasizes the significant impact of these tools. Using the dashboards has greatly improved her team’s ability to visualize and interpret data, enabling LEAs to take a more proactive approach by pinpointing areas for improvement. This has been crucial for addressing key challenges such as managing student transitions, reducing chronic absenteeism, and enhancing overall engagement.
"We're relying on our EK12 attendance dashboards every single week to decide shifts we need to make in our approach to ensure our attendance rates are in line with what we're striving for them to be, and especially keeping our arm around chronic absenteeism," Dr. White explains. “Using the dashboard has helped us to see trends in data that help us to be far more responsive in a way that we historically have not been able to be."
