School Board Approves New School Hours
for HS Students
When students report for the new school year on August
24, 2009, they will be adjusting to a school day that is 45 minutes shorter
than this year. On April 27 the School Board approved a shorter
school day for high school and middle school students, along with changes
in graduation requirements.
The school day for students in the 2009/10 school year
will be from 7:30 a.m. to 1:45 p.m. All teachers will have a planning
period from 1:45 p.m. until 2:30 p.m. The School Board also approved the
following modifications to the Duval County's 2008-09 Student Progression
Plan:
1. Reduce the total credits required to graduate from 26 to 24. Based on
Florida Statue 1003.428 (1) minimum graduation requirements require the
successful completion of a minimum of 24 credits, an International
Baccalaureate curriculum, or an Advanced International Certificate of
Education Curriculum.
2. Eliminate the requirement for the Keystone credit. State Statute
requires the career and education planning course to be taught in 7th or
8th grade. This content is currently integrated in the 8th grade social
studies curriculum in DCPS schools.
3. Allow any high school course taken in middle school in 2007-2008 and
thereafter to subtract from the total number of subject area credits
required in high school. For example, a student who took Algebra 1 in 8th
grade would only need three additional mathematics credits in grades 9-12
to graduate instead of four.
4. Allow the two year world language requirement to be waived for students
who are required to take three years of Intensive Reading in high school.
