A New Schedule, A New School Day: Redwood Prepares for Eight Periods

With an eight-period schedule coming next school year, Redwood staff look ahead, preparing for a new schedule that could reshape students’ course options, daily routines, and academic opportunities.

Many schools around the United States have been experimenting with block schedules. Researchers studied the change in test scores and grades, and also observed the behavioral switch between students.

According to UConn Today, researchers’ statistics showed that freshmen and sophomores had no change in their work during the block schedule. Their test scores stayed consistent and average. However, juniors and seniors showed an increase in test results during the block schedule.

Another fact they discovered was that higher-level students remained successful regardless of the schedule.

Yet students who were behind or entered the block schedule with less prior knowledge may be at a disadvantage and could struggle with being behind.

Next year, our school will have to adapt to this new schedule. This will create a new environment for all students and staff.

The question is, what should we start to expect?

Dr. Gridiron, Redwood High School’s principal, shared how beneficial the new schedule would be for new students.

The process was no simple one, as it started 3 to 5 years ago when the VUSD community started analyzing all the schedules and looking at where students have opportunities that other kids don’t.

Dr. Gridiron says, “For example, if you’re in an academy or if you’re having to take a special class, those classes really fill up your schedule, and it limits you from having to take other classes.”

The potential of this new schedule is that “Students can take all their classes without having to take a zero period,” said Dr. Gridiron.

Some pros for the new schedule will include bigger opportunities and a larger selection of classes for each student.

On the terms of the structure for our school schedules, Monday through Friday, the days will look a lot different.

“Days would be constructed like 4 periods a day,” Dr. Gridiron says. “The school starting time, however, will more than likely stay the same. The ending time will be, I believe, 10-15 minutes earlier.”

Students were concerned about graduation credits changing. He shared that it could potentially only change for new incoming students.

Dr. Gridiron says, “I don’t imagine that the current juniors, sophomores, or even freshmen in that case would have an increase in their graduation requirements, but all the incoming freshmen probably would.”

Assistant principal, Alexa Barba-Tepper, shared some more changes we will see next year regarding summer school.

“We are hoping to definitely have some spots for advancement, but especially for how big Redwood is, we need students to be able to take their history classes, and some credit recovery plans,” said Mrs. Barba-Tepper. “But yes, we are still looking at summer school, maybe just not as big as it’s normally been.”

She also shared how free periods can still be present throughout junior and senior schedules.

This new schedule might still provide a chance for the juniors and seniors who are taking classes off campus.

She says classes such as “college online, or in person out of college. So kind of how we still have it now, to where if you prove to your counselor you’re taking a COS class, that’s one less class that you will take at Redwood.”

For the upperclassmen, free class periods will still be able to happen, she says, “Because instead of 5 classes out of 6, it’ll be 7 out of 8, maybe 6 out of 8.”

Overall, this new schedule can expand course choices and flexibility, offer advanced coursework and dual enrollment expansion, and introduce accelerated CTE pathways.

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