Subscribe
Osan American Elementary School students say the Pledge of Allegiance at Osan Air Base, South Korea, on Aug. 25, 2014.

Osan American Elementary School students say the Pledge of Allegiance at Osan Air Base, South Korea, on Aug. 25, 2014. (Armando R. Limon/Stars and Stripes)

SEOUL, South Korea — Department of Defense Education Activity middle and high school students in Seoul will attend classes on a “hybrid” schedule next year that combines traditional seven-period days and block-scheduled days within a single week, officials announced last week.

The change will mean more time in the classroom and fewer mix-ups at Seoul American High School over which classes students should be attending on a given day, principal Kathleen Reiss said.

The school now operates on a block schedule, with “A” and “B” class schedules alternating daily.

“It’s constant confusion now,” Reiss said. “There’s not a day that goes by that somebody doesn’t ask me, ‘Is this A day or B day?’ ”

Under the hybrid schedule, Mondays, Tuesdays and Fridays will be seven-period days. Wednesdays and Thursdays will be block-scheduled days, with a built-in seminar period used for assemblies, makeup tests and other instructional purposes.

She estimated that by adopting the seven-period days, each class will add nearly 500 minutes of instructional time per academic year.

DODEA Pacific spokesman Charly Hoff said Seoul American Middle School will move to a similar hybrid schedule next year, with a 50-minute  seminar on Wednesdays that focuses on mentoring, enrichment, extra academic support for students, clubs and teacher collaboration.

Reiss said the decision to move to a hybrid schedule was a compromise, with student leaders telling her they preferred the hybrid schedule. She said she also discussed the matter with parents and teachers.

rowland.ashley@stripes.com

Sign Up for Daily Headlines

Sign up to receive a daily email of today's top military news stories from Stars and Stripes and top news outlets from around the world.

Sign Up Now