Hawaii School Time Bill Becomes Law
After a dramatic showdown in the Hawaii Legislature this spring, a bill delaying a plan to introduce more school time has become law.
Lawmakers passed last year to demonstrate their commitment to preventing Furlough Fridays from happening again. The law progressively increases the number of hours and days teachers are required to spend in the classroom with their students, but the high cost of negotiating extra pay for teachers’ extra hours prompted lawmakers to delay the plan.
Now instead of all schools, only half of elementary schools will be required to increase instruction time next year. Multi-track and secondary schools get a three-year reprieve to sort out logistics and define “instructional time.”
Gov. Neil Abercrombie signed the hotly contested on May 18.
