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FOUR-DAY SCHOOL WEEK
RESOURCE CENTER
NATIONAL RESEARCH

The research on the four-day school week

The four-day school week has been studied far more rigorously in the past five years than ever before. Below is a curated collection of peer-reviewed research, prioritizing studies published since 2021, organized by topic. Working papers and major reports are listed separately and clearly labeled. The short version: the four-day week’s effects depend less on the calendar itself than on how much instructional time a district keeps.

PEER-REVIEWED JOURNAL ARTICLES · 2021–PRESENT

Academic achievement

Cost & school finance

Student health, behavior & community safety

Adoption & community (Missouri)

CLEARLY LABELED

Working papers & major reports

A note on the evidence: the strongest recent studies of teacher recruitment and retention are still working papers, so the peer-reviewed base for that specific question is thinner than it is for student achievement. For our own team’s peer-reviewed studies, see Dr. Turner’s research.
NATIONAL CONFERENCE PRESENTATIONS

Oregon State University National 4-Day School Week Conference

Videos of sessions from the October 2023 national conference, covering academic and non-academic impacts. Sessions feature researchers Paul Thompson (Oregon State), Rebecca Kilburn (University of New Mexico), Emily Tomayko (Montana State), Emily Morton (American Institutes for Research), and Jon Turner (Missouri State University), plus numerous superintendent panels.

Watch the conference sessions →
QUESTIONS OR NEED RESOURCES?

Contact Dr. Jon Turner

Associate Professor of Educational Leadership · Missouri State University, Springfield MO

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