The educational system is constantly changing in order to give students a better chance at learning and moving through their years in school with greater ease. One of the methods that educators have come up with to help students towards better learning is block scheduling. This form of scheduling requires students to attend lesser subjects in a day, but for longer periods of time. Block scheduling has its upsides and downsides, and it’s ideal to understand all of these to determine whether it’s appropriate for you or not.
List of Pros of Block Scheduling
1. More Time
Some instructors who have project based lesson plans struggle with traditional scheduling because they don’t get the time they need in order to accomplish the activities planned for the session. But because block scheduling allots more hours per subject, teachers can incorporate projects and activities at the end of lectures to reinforce learning.
2. Less Tiring
Students who have to attend more classes in a day feel more tired. With this in mind, block scheduling aims to reduce the fatigue experienced by students by limiting the number of subjects required in a day.
3. Less Information to Deal With
It can be tough to learn so many individual topics in a single day. Sometimes, because there’s so much to learn and memorize, students find themselves failing because of information overload. By managing the amount of information taught in a single day, students have more time to embrace lessons and understand what’s being given them.
List of Cons of Block Scheduling
1. Too Much Time
Some argue that instructors who don’t need as much time might end up not teaching anything for half of the allotted schedule. This means students are left doing nothing after a lecture is completed, which results to a complete waste of time.
2. No Continuity
Because subjects are scheduled to be held 4 times a week at most, some students lose continuity and fail to remember important information during the long break from the subject, unlike traditional scheduling which designates an hour per subject everyday which helps reinforce learning.
3. Absences are Heavier
When a student misses one session, it would be like they’re missing more than just one. This is because block scheduling makes use of much more time than traditional scheduling, and thus lessons taught in a single session are much more plentiful.
