WHB/6/8
Sponsored by Arhan Narayanan, Logan Williams of Franklin High School
This legislation was filed in the Education category
Presented as part of the YIG Volunteer 2024 conference
| 1 | BE IT ENACTED BY THE TENNESSEE YMCA YOUTH IN GOVERNMENT LEGISLATURE: |
| 2 | |
| 3 | Section 1) Specific terms in this act (unless context requires otherwise) shall be defined |
| 4 | as stated below: |
| 5 | Education: The right of all individuals to pursue academic learning through the services |
| 6 | provided by a school (e.x. high schools) |
| 7 | Higher learning: The ability for an individual enrolled in any academic program to purse |
| 8 | further knowledge outside of the classroom setting, and/or expand their knowledge |
| 9 | further by engaging in safe and constructive participation within the classroom |
| 10 | After school programs: The services provided by a school or other organization in order |
| 11 | for students to be kept under adult supervision, ensuring their safety while participating in |
| 12 | some form of activity. These programs can include, but are not limited to: sports practice, |
| 13 | music/theater rehearsals, or tutoring. |
| 14 | Administration: The authority figures in the school in charge of (all or either) staff |
| 15 | management, student relations, parent contact/intervention, and/or disciplinary measures. |
| 16 | These roles can include, but are not limited to: school principal/assistant principal, |
| 17 | counselor (S.T.A.R.S or subject), and/or school attendance officer. |
| 18 | Professional Development: The process or processes of educating teaching and other |
| 19 | school staff about the developments in student affairs, district policy, Human Resources |
| 20 | policy, and/or state legislature regarding student-teacher academic relations in regards to |
| 21 | the academic strength of students. |
| 22 | Core Subjects: The four major subjects that reflect the majority of a student’s academic |
| 23 | performance. Subjects include: Mathematics, Science, English, and History/Social |
| 24 | Studies. |
| 25 | |
| 26 | Section 2): All public high schools in the state of Tennessee must adjust their start and |
| 27 | end times, as well as the number of days students are required to be in school from the |
| 28 | current hours of 7:40 am - 2:47 pm days Monday through Friday to 8:30 am - 1:30 pm |
| 29 | days Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, and Friday. The weekend for students being |
| 30 | Wednesday, Saturday, and Sunday. |
| 31 | |
| 32 | |
| 33 | Section 3): Schools who switch to these new schedules will be eligible for the following: |
| 34 | Increased funding towards school programs (sports, music, arts, theater, etc.) |
| 35 | Increased teacher pay |
| 36 | Increased number of classes students are eligible to enroll and take during their high |
| 37 | school career |
| 38 | |
| 39 | Increased number of professional development programs to be held for school staff |
| 40 | Increased student and teacher participation in afterschool programs |
| 41 | Or an increase in the enrollment numbers of students at said high schools. |
| 42 | |
| 43 | Section 4) This bill is proposed to ensure the positive learning environment, mental |
| 44 | health, safety, and academic growth of both students and teachers alike. |
| 45 | |
| 46 | Section 5) The new schedule division allocates Monday and Tuesday for periods 1 |
| 47 | through 4 and 5 - 8 respectively. Wednesday is to be held as a break day for students, |
| 48 | allowing for an entire day for teachers to prepare lesson plans. Days Thursday and Friday |
| 49 | are to follow the same schedule as Monday and Tuesday in order to meet equal |
| 50 | instructional time as in the current school week practiced by schools in Tennessee today. |
| 51 | Additionally, the post school hours on Wednesday and after instructional time for all |
| 52 | classes are to be used by the school to hold any of the following: |
| 53 | Professional development |
| 54 | Teacher workshops |
| 55 | After school programs |
| 56 | College and career readiness conferences |
| 57 | Parent-teacher meetings |
| 58 | Or extra planning periods for teachers |
| 59 | |
| 60 | Section 6) The new schedule also calls for high schools to start classroom instruction no |
| 61 | earlier than 8:30 am, and released no later than 1:30 pm. These hours have been chosen |
| 62 | because of the scientific fact that high school students need significantly more sleep than |
| 63 | any other age group of people. Requiring students to wake up any earlier than 8:30 am in |
| 64 | order to arrive on time to school robs students of necessary neurological development, |
| 65 | which has been reported to affect them during their adult years. The later hours also allow |
| 66 | for student athletes, performers, and club participants to pursue their after school |
| 67 | programs, without the practice extending late into the evening - which can further affect |
| 68 | student performance. Additionally, the later times allow for teachers to create more in |
| 69 | depth lessons which is proven to increase student engagement and academic |
| 70 | performance. |
| 71 | |
| 72 | Section 8) This bill calls for classroom instruction to last no longer than 1 hour and 30 |
| 73 | minutes. After each instructional period, a 10 minute break is to be held for students |
| 74 | to prepare themselves for their next classes. During these times, students are expected to |
| 75 | follow school rules while engaging in relaxing activities such as: |
| 76 | Eating a snack |
| 77 | Talking with friends |
| 78 | Browsing the internet |
| 79 | Going outside |
| 80 | Reading, drawing, and/or making music |
| 81 | Stretch |
| 82 | Listen to music |
| 83 | Or any safe, school appropriate and approved activity. |
| 84 | These breaks have been proven to increase student participation and attention during the |
| 85 | following instructional periods, which further increase student performance academically |
| 86 | which the state of Tennessee can observe through the TCAP, EOCs, and AP exams held |
| 87 | near the end of each school term. This also allows for the similar 30 hour instructional |
| 88 | time students receive during the current school week while limiting the amount of time |
| 89 | students spend time in school - amounting to a total of 24 hours of instructional time per |
| 90 | week. |
| 91 | |
| 92 | Section 9) This bill is aimed to reinforce and further amend current laws that are set in |
| 93 | place in the state of Tennessee such as HB1836/SB1818 which state that no public high |
| 94 | school should begin its classroom instruction before 8:30 am. |
| 95 | |
| 96 | Section 10) This law will only pertain to public high schools in Tennessee. Any private |
| 97 | high school that chooses to adopt the guidelines proposed in this bill is doing so on its |
| 98 | own prerogative, and not by state law. |
| 99 | |
| 100 | Section 11) All laws and statues in conflict with this bill are to be repealed with the |
| 101 | enactment of this law. |
| 102 | |
| 103 | Section 12) This law is to take effect on August 1, 2024. |
| 104 |