This school year, Loyola Academy has put a new dismissal of 3 p.m. compared to the previous 2:30 p.m. that has been in place for the past four years.
This new dismissal time puts Loyola more on par with other schools’ dismissal times such as New Trier (3:10), Evanston (3:35), and North Shore Country Day (3:15).
The 3 p.m. dismissal has plenty of underlying benefits. One benefit is the additional course content added to the school year. During the 2:30 pm dismissal, Principal Devine said, “entire units were being excised… the five minutes additional time in each class is the equivalent of about two and a half weeks of learning.” The 3 p.m. dismissal adds the opportunity for additional learning and for teachers to add other necessary lessons to the curriculum.
Another benefit of the 3 p.m. dismissal is the extra time added to free periods and lunch. Mr. Dugan, a theology teacher at Loyola added, “The additional five minutes of free periods feel like it’s allowing for more grading and prep time.” The extra five minutes of the free period or lunch period allows students and teachers to get more work done or socialize.
However, there are a few drawbacks to the new 3 p.m. dismissal. A drawback to the Loyola dismissal is student fatigue. Senior Sophia Hayes said, “The 3 p.m. dismissal is an unnecessary lengthening of the school day… everyone seems drowsy at the end of the day.”
Students are not the only ones who recognize this mood difference. Mr. Dugan added, “The final class of the day seems to drag much more than past years… they are the most lethargic when they meet at the end of the day.” Students across each grade level have experienced more fatigue during the 3 p.m. dismissal than the previous 2:30 p.m.
An additional drawback of the 3 p.m. dismissal is the increased traffic for commuters. For people that live farther away, they may face the beginnings of rush hour traffic on their commute home. During the 2:30 p.m. dismissal, the traffic was significantly lighter.
Overall, the 3 p.m. dismissal has contributed advantages and drawbacks to the Loyola community. It improves the learning of students and the knowledge they obtain, however, it adds to students’ fatigue and commuter time.
