The Austin ISD school board discussed increasing planning time for elementary teachers to improve students’ academic performance in core subjects at a meeting March 10.
The percentage of AISD students who fail to meet Texas academic standards is often higher than the state average. Within the district, the achievement gap between low-income students and their peers is significant. In 2021, 47% of AISD students met expectations on State of Texas Assessments of Academic Readiness in reading, compared to 26% of economically disadvantaged AISD students.
“The tightest correlation to student academic outcomes is from the relationship and the teaching of our classroom teachers,” Superintendent Stephanie Elizalde said at the March 10 meeting. “The teacher is the program. Therefore, we must provide our teachers everything they need in order to achieve.”
The proposed changes would allow teachers of core subjects such as math, reading and science 6 1/2 hours of planning time per week by changing the schedule of fine arts and physical education classes.
Elementary students in AISD have 45-minute art, music and PE classes every three days. The new plan would give students PE classes daily and hourlong art and music classes once a week.
PE class sizes could also be increased to the state maximum of one teacher per 45 students— double the current size of AISD PE classes—though the board is still reviewing this change, according to Elizalde.
Several parents and teachers called in to the March 10 board meeting to express their concerns over decreased time for their students to engage in the arts and worries over the safety of larger PE classes.
“Music and art will lose 22 classes per year with students,” said Heidi Langan, a music teacher at Galindo Elementary School. “The district is trying to make up for lost time and increase classroom teacher planning time by making classes 60 minutes long. This is not developmentally appropriate for elementary students.”
“Having PE daily would be great,” said Rebecca Dominguez, a PE teacher at Harris Elementary School. “However, our gyms do not accommodate whole grade levels but only single classes. It is a safety concern.”
Specific schedule changes will be determined by each individual campus. AISD elementary schools will be required to create a schedule accounting for the board’s proposed changes by April 29.
