Kolding Gymnasium has scrapped ordinary Wednesday lessons, replacing them with alternating focus days and flex days under a new weekly structure.
The upper secondary school in Kolding no longer runs standard lesson modules on Wednesdays. DR reports that the model is now fully in place after the summer holiday, following a test period that began around the start of the year.
On flex days, students may use the time as they wish if they have completed their assigned work in advance. DR visited the school on Wednesday, when students had their first real focus day. One group watched the Danish film Nøjsomheden at a cinema bar as part of a Danish focus day.
Another group spent the day on a Spanish focus day about Latin American street food. Herbs, tomatoes and lime were brought in for the session. Students made a homemade salsa and produced a cooking video alongside written material.
How the model works
According to the school’s own description on the Kolding Gymnasium website, the structure is called 4+1. Every other Wednesday is a focus day, and the following Wednesday is a flex day. Focus days are used for larger activities and more practice oriented learning outside the usual module structure.
Rector Sune Hother Petersen says the new structure was developed with input from both teachers and students. Per DR, students had asked for more flexibility, more time for immersion, and more varied, real world teaching.
The rector also points to students with social anxiety, who sometimes find it difficult to come to school. He says the mid week break can give those students calm. He hopes the model will appeal to different learning styles.
Spanish teacher Else Steen told DR that she spent more time preparing the focus day than a normal 90 minute lesson. She says she had to think differently about what students would find engaging. The Spanish teaching group developed the ideas together, and the program can be reused next year.
Students who spoke to DR described the week as a welcome change. Andreas Lange, 18, said flex days still involve a large amount of assigned work. He said he does not consider the system perfect, but that it works better than the old schedule.
Lima Sherzad, also 18, said she had grown tired of school days running from 8 to 15 with the same routine every day. She said variation makes her more willing to take part. Silas Sølbeck Kretschmann, 18, noted that going to the cinema on a Wednesday morning was unfamiliar.
Freja Rosenlund Due Johansen, who attended the Danish focus day, said that learning new material at home on a flex day brings challenges. According to her, the school runs a flex café where students can get help if they need it.
