Free periods are a fundamental mainstay for high school students. Generally for upperclassmen, a free period varies in time but consists of an unsupervised class period during which the student can do whatever they please. At Springside Chestnut Hill Academy, the teaching staff makes accommodations for underclassmen to introduce them to this privilege slowly. Organized study halls are a more controlled version of free periods in which students without a class schedule will instead attend a study hall in a teacher’s class. In this study hall, the student must do some sort of work for school and is not allowed on their phones.
Do students use free periods to be productive or is a free period just time for them to go on their phones and leave campus? Senior Ava Lanzetta shared “…I think they can be distracting, because my free periods with my friends, we just sit here and talk um. But if I don’t have any free period, or if I don’t have any friends in my free periods, then I’m productive, and I do get my work done.”
Other seniors see this escape from work as a good thing. Fellow senior Michael Glennon sees this as an opportunity to lock back in. “…I use [free periods] as a time to deep distress and allow my allow my mind to just take it all in because I can’t be doing work for all hours of the day.”
The main difference between study halls and free periods is that underclassmen, freshmen, and sophomores have study halls whilst upperclassmen, juniors, and seniors have free periods. However, halfway through a sophomore students’ year, they are allowed to apply for free periods. To qualify for a free, a student must have no grades in the gradebook below a B- or else they will remain in study halls the rest of the year.
“I like the way that we do it here,” said long-time English teacher Mrs. DiDonato. “I think like rolling them out slowly is developmentally appropriate. So like, I think for ninth graders, having a study hall teacher that can, like, check in with them is important. And then I think, like, giving them a little bit of freedom halfway through the sophomore year is good, and then calling them back if they struggle.”
While students have their takes on free periods and study halls, a teacher may have an outside view of what his or her students do during these opportunities. Although some may consider not working in their free periods to be unproductive, DiDonato argues otherwise. “I think kids use the time for what they need … So some kids may need to rest, and that’s productive. Some kids may need to eat, and that’s productive, and some kids need to get work done. So I think having breaks in the day people are productive in the necessary way…” In contrast, Mr. Ford, a math teacher and former military veteran, argued in favor of study halls. “I think structured time to get work done is beneficial so that I didn’t have to do work at home, right? So whatever it takes to make that happen.”
In conclusion, whether free periods or organized study halls are more productive depends largely on the student. While free periods offer flexibility and the chance for personal development, they also come with a risk of distraction. Organized study halls provide structure and accountability, but may lack the autonomy that some students need to thrive. A balanced approach, offering both structured and unstructured time, might be the most effective solution.
