Calhoun School is profiled in The Times today. Jenny Anderson writes:
Long blocks became standard this year at Calhoun, as part of a radical attempt to alter the structure of the school day and school year.
Instead of the traditional schedule of eight 45-minute classes each day, with courses broken into two semesters, high school students at Calhoun intensively study three to five subjects in each of five terms, or modules, that are 32 to 36 days long.
I admire Head of School Steve Nelson’s refreshing desire to turn down the testing culture and go against the NYC private school grain. As a maverick with a vision, Nelson may not care about mainstream acceptance, but I don’t think this scheduling change is going to play well with many prospective parents. Calhoun is establishing itself as a preeminent progressive private school just as many New York City families are seeking a more structured, academically intensive, Ivy League directed experience for their children. On the flip side, one clear Calhoun benefit: the school does not require the ERB for admission to kindergarten.