List of 9 items.

• What are the biggest benefits of the new schedule in the Lower School?

  • Increased homeroom time where English Language Arts, Math, and Social Studies are taught, matching developmental benchmarks for instructional time in those spaces
  • Our specials classes (Art, Science, Spanish, Maker, Library, and Music) will be taught in a carousel model which facilitates deep learning and cross-discipline project-based learning
  • Fewer transitions from class to class will maximize academic time and will minimize the number of different adults our youngest learners will have to report to throughout the day
  • Grade-level and specials team joint planning time each day will enhance collaboration across curricular areas
  • Additional time for movement and play every day

• What are the biggest benefits of the new schedule in the Middle & Upper School?

  • Fewer transitions and fewer classes taken at the same time, resulting in deeper learning, less homework, a more focused schedule, reduced stress, more time for sleep, more family time, etc.
  • Longer class periods will maximize academic time and allow for deeper learning, better use of campus resources, and opportunity for more variety in classroom activities
  • The MOD schedule allows for students to take up to 8 year-long classes in a school year (as opposed to the previous schedule which only allowed for 7). This is a great opportunity for students looking to double-up in science or math courses, or explore other topics on a deeper level.
  • A later start time means more sleep for adolescents. Better rested students will result in more productive and engaging class time
  • There will be at least 90 minutes of “agency time” for students each day
  • Faculty are available for “extra help” every day, so students have better access to their teachers if they have questions or need assistance
  • Longer advisory time each day will support deeper student/advisor relationships and provide more time for academic and socioemotional check-ins
  • Faculty members work with fewer students during each module; as a result, they are able to devote more time to each of them
  • Ensembles (chorus, orchestra, etc.) do not conflict with either “free time” or core academic classes

• What research was considered when designing and choosing schedule models?

  The following summary represents the culmination of research on schedules and best practices as identified by Independent School Management (ISM), NAIS, Learning & the Brain, ASCD, and others. 

• Are other schools using the MOD schedule format?

  Yes. We have connected with a network of schools that utilize a MOD schedule.  

  • Duchesne Academy of the Sacred Heart in Houston, TX
  • The Madeira School in McLean, VA
  • St. Mary’s School in Medford, OR
  • The Cambridge School of Weston in Weston, MA
  • Lakefield College School in Lakefield, Ontario
  • Forest Ridge School of the Sacred Heart in Bellevue, WA
  • George School in Newtown, PA
  • The Calhoun School in New York, NY

  In addition to partnering with schools around the country that employ a MOD schedule, there is a body of research supporting this type of learning, including but not limited to:

  • Induced Forgetting with Enhanced Learning
  • The Spacing Effect 
  • Spaced Retrieval 
  • Why Spaced Learning Works 

• How will KCD ensure it maintains academic excellence?

  All our research indicates that students who are taking fewer classes at a time are more deeply engaged in learning. Additionally, longer class periods allow for more in-depth study. The schools we consulted who currently use a MOD schedule have reported that their test scores have stayed high or have risen with the implementation of a MOD schedule.
  
  

  KCD will continue to use the metrics it has always used to ensure that our program maintains academic excellence, such as standardized testing scores.

• Will morning and afternoon child care be available?

  Yes. Morning child care will be available for students in JK-8th grades on Mondays, Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Fridays from 7:30-8 am and on Wednesdays from 7:30-8:30 am. Morning child care will cost $5 per day.

  
  

  We will continue to offer Bearcat Den after school until 6 pm for Lower School students. 

  
  

  For additional details, please contact Jason Floyd, Director of Auxiliary Programs, at jason.floyd@kcd.org.

• How will the new schedule alter graduation requirements?

  Beginning with the class of 2028, KCD graduates will be required to have a certain number of “bins” rather than credits to graduate. A bin is the time spent in a class. A bin can be thought of as a “class period.” A full-year course is made up of three bins; a course that lasts only one MOD is a single bin course. For example, a student taking a year-long English course will earn three of their required twelve bins of English, earning one bin for each MOD that the student has English class. A student taking an elective Photo class will earn one bin because the entirety of the Photo course is contained within one MOD.

  
  In the new graduation requirements, what has previously been called “4 credits” of English will now be “12 bins.” Changes to previous graduate requirements now include an additional year-long course in mathematics, two additional courses in wellness, and a STEAM course. We will transition to these requirements over the next four years. The classes of 2025, 2026, and 2027 do not have to take specific additional courses, but they will earn more credits toward graduation overall, due to the increased number of courses taken each year. 

• How will Advanced Placement (AP) courses be affected by the new schedule?  

  Many AP courses will be scheduled in MODs 1, 3, and 5 so that the course work is completed a few weeks before the May AP exams. In those cases, bridge work may be provided for the few weeks between the end of the course and the AP exam. Some AP courses are able to be taught on shorter timelines (those designed to be semester long courses rather than year long courses, or those which focus more on processes than content) and may be scheduled in MODs 2, 4, and 6.

• Will assessments be altered by the new schedule?

  Teaching in MODs allows us the opportunity to move away from a traditional “exam week” at the end of the school year and encourages faculty to do more summative unit assessments and project-based teaching/learning. While some assessments may look different, KCD’s standard of academic excellence will remain, as students will be challenged to think critically and apply their learning in new ways.