Board hears recommendations to study middle-school configurations, sixth-grade placement and feeder patterns

Salt Lake City School District staff presented findings from a months-long working group on middle-level schools at the Feb. 8 board study session, concluding that schedules, course offerings and counselor allocations vary widely across the district and recommending a short-term working group and broader community input to study whether moving sixth grade into middle schools (a 6'8 configuration) would better serve students.

The district's working group reviewed the five traditional middle schools (Bridal/Brent? recording uses Bridal as a principal/area director; schools named in the report include Clayton, Glendale, Hillside, Northwest and Bryant/Nibley Park) and noted three common schedule models in the district: a 5'by'5 block (used at Glendale), a seven-period day and an eight-period day. The group found that schedules and start/end times differ across schools,…