Despite half days, holidays, teacher work days and field trips, a school week at Roswell High School consists of five days. Five days of school can create mental fatigue for a student. With a four-day week, students will have more rest and less stress.

By Friday, students struggle to get out of bed due to long hours of homework and extracurricular activities. Some of these activities include sports, clubs and volunteer work. For example, a typical day for some students consists of seven hours at school, and a minimum of two hours of extracurriculars. This same pattern everyday can be hard on a student and cause them to fall behind in school.

The American Academy of Medicine recommended that “teenagers age 13-18 years should sleep 8-10 hours per 24 hours”. They also said, “students who get enough sleep may have fewer attention and behavior problems”. A four-day week will allow students to complete homework at their own pace, instead of rushing. The Seattle Pi stated that, “Peach County in Fort Valley, Ga, has seen a gradual increase in its graduation rate since adopting the new school week”.

Another positive is that students won’t get in trouble as much. Jimmy Linderman, superintendent of the Chattanooga County School District in Georgia, reported that during one year the discipline referral frequency of students attending school only four days per week fell 73 percent. This shows that the students had more energy and were engaged in the classroom. 

Since 1949, Roswell High School has had a five-day school week. If the four-day school week was adopted, they would be the first school in Fulton County to make the change. 

“If we had four-day weeks, we would be able to get more rest for the next upcoming week, which would improve grades and our work ethic,” says sophomore Brandon Foshaug.

“I think it would be beneficial if we had a four-day week; students could get more work done and us teachers wouldn’t have to pack too much information at once,” says English teacher Ms. Mathis.