Are Four-Day School Weeks Delivering on Teacher Retention and Recruitment?

Abstract The four-day school week (4DSW) is becoming an increasingly popular alternative to the traditional five-day week schedule, particularly in rural school districts. While most districts initially adopted the shortened schedule to reduce operational costs and improve student attendance, many recent adopters view it as a potential solution to concerns about teacher shortages and retention that have intensified since the COVID-19 pandemic. This brief synthesizes new evidence from Arkansas, Colorado, Missouri, and Oregon examining the impacts of 4DSWs on teacher recruitment and retention. Our review reveals that, counter to proponents’ claims, 4DSWs do not consistently improve these outcomes. These findings contribute to the growing evidence that, despite widespread support for 4DSWs in the communities that use them, they often fail to deliver the benefits districts hope to see from adopting them and can have negative impacts on student achievement. Addressing staffing challenges in rural schools may require adapting evidence-based solutions from urban schools and testing new, promising strategies that intervene at various points along the teacher pipeline. In the meantime, districts using or considering the 4DSW should proceed with caution, and states should consider policies that monitor and/or restrict the implementation of 4DSWs to track and prevent negative impacts on students.