Letter To Parents Regarding The Schedule

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24 February 2017

Dear Families, You may have learned from your daughters that next year, our school schedule will change. Today during advisory, girls were shown the new schedule and told about many of the nuts and bolts that will accompany the change. For over ten years, faculty members and those on the academic leadership team have been investigating alternatives to the current schedule. Questions arise because of the adoption of new programs, as well as an understanding of best educational practices that might enhance teaching and learning. We have been in touch with a range of other schools, both in Baltimore and throughout the country, including some of our sister Mercy schools, to examine a myriad of school schedules. The changes that we are making are to enhance teaching and learning at Mercy. Essentially, our teachers wanted to see their students more often and to increase class time. The new schedule is a five-day schedule, and classes will meet four out of five days. All class periods will be 50 minutes and lunch will be 30 minutes. This change results in 50 more minutes of class time for each pattern within a 20-day time period. We envision more continuity of instruction, with teachers seeing their classes most days. In addition, with the dramatic increase of technology use among adolescents, young brains are rewired, decreasing attention span and indicating that shorter classes, with less time between meetings for a particular class, will be more effective. Some particulars are as follows:   

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Check-in with advisers will be from 7:55 a.m. – 8:00 a.m. Announcements will begin at 8:00 a.m. sharp. First period class begins at 8:15 a.m.; for four out of five days, last period will end at 3:10 p.m. In the best of all possible worlds, the five days would be Monday through Friday, but because of the pattern of holidays, Mondays and Fridays are more often not in session, resulting in a disparity of class meeting times for each pattern. Therefore our days will be named green, red, gold, white, and purple. Almost all Wednesdays are gold days, and school will be dismissed on gold days at 2:15 p.m. There may be one or two exceptions to this for the entire year, including Ash Wednesday.

1300 E. Northern Parkway * Baltimore, MD 21239 * 410.433.8880 * www.mercyhighschool.com

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On red and white days, there are six class periods and “Magic Time,” which will handle assemblies, liturgies, class meetings, advisory, and, occasionally, a combination of these (for example, 30 minutes of class meeting followed by 20 minutes for advisory). Gold days will also have six class periods. Green and purple days will have seven class periods, with one period free unless a student is taking seven courses. Patterns will still tumble, as they currently do, so that any class will meet at a different time each day.

Our girls are understandably worried about homework and tests. Homework should be about the same as it is now; since teachers will see their students more often, they will not give as much homework per night. Teachers will also have more flexibility about scheduling tests, since they will see their students most days. We will have humane policies about homework and testing, since of course, we want what is best for our girls. You are welcome to take a look at our anticipated schedule on the school’s web site or click this link to see it. There may still be small tweaks to it as we continue our planning for next year. Of course, there will be things we will need to work out that we might not have anticipated, so know that your questions are valuable and we want to hear them. You are welcome to ask your daughter’s Adviser or to email me any questions you might have. I will also be at the Mothers’ Club meeting on March 14 to answer questions in person. Mercy High School is dedicated to providing the best education for your daughters. When the schedule changed to its current allocation of time over twenty years ago, our girls, their brains, and our curriculum were all different. At this particular time in our history, changing the schedule makes pedagogical sense. Please be assured that best practices in teaching and learning are at the heart of our decision. Do not hesitate to contact me or your daughter’s Adviser if you have any questions. Sincerely yours,

Jeanne A. Blakeslee Principal

1300 E. Northern Parkway * Baltimore, MD 21239 * 410.433.8880 * www.mercyhighschool.com