An example of a middle school schedule following a traditional scheduling framework is for students to attend courses in English, social studies, math, science, Spanish, and elective or planning classes. Depending on school goals, a double English or double math scheduling framework may be adopted to emphasize these core subject areas.Continue Reading
Middle school scheduling models vary according to the individual needs of the schools but are often centered around interdisciplinary team collaborations. However, single team scheduling, including regrouping students according to mastery level, is another scheduling model favored by middle schools, particularly in relation to math skills classes. Most commonly, middle school classes are 40 to 50 minutes in duration, but a small percentage of schools offer 60- to 90-minute classes.
Middle schools can choose between fixed and variable scheduling. In a fixed schedule, teachers are required to follow a bell schedule that is shared by the entire school. Class times are synced, and teachers are expected to begin and end classes at the same time. In variable scheduling, a bell schedule is developed, but teachers are not required to follow this schedule. Instead, teachers can adapt class times to suit individual lessons. In this model, there may be an additional emphasis on exploratory courses such as world languages, music or health.Learn more about K-12