Troubled schools get longer day, small classes

The Boston Herald Reports:

Nine Boston Public schools at risk of being taken over by the state will
have smaller classes and longer hours during the next school year under an
improvement plan announced yesterday by Superintendent Michael G. Contompasis.

The $10 million initiative calls for each of
the schools to have an extra hour of instruction every day beginning in
September, a full-time “family and community outrach coordinator” and a maximum class size of two fewer students, officials said.

Seventy-five percent of the schools’ vacancies will be filled at the sole discretion of their principals, Contompasis said. Teachers currently in those schools may request transfers to other schools for the 2007-2008 academic year, he said. But those who choose to stay will receive salary incentives of up to 5 percent and 20 additional hours of professional development.