Journal of Primary Education

Abstract

Many academics, educators and the education authority see converting half-day schools to whole-day schools as an effective means of enhancing educational quality. Teachers are both initiators and implementors of educational changes. Their expectations and the problems teachers face when implementing the whole-day school policy have significant impact on the success of the policy.

This study aims at revealing the expectations of teachers and the reality in schools which have newly adopted the whole-day scheme. It is hoped that this study will reveal new grounds for more in-depth studies into this area.

This research was a survey of recently converted whole-day schools with 16 or more classes. One teacher from each of the sample schools was selected to attend a semi-structured interview which lasted for 2 to 3 hours. The interviews were tape-recorded. Respondents were invited to validate the transcripts before they were analysed.

It is found that extending the schooling hours alone did not help improve the quality of education. Indeed, some new problems were created when schools adopted the whole-day policy. If the potentials of whole-day schools are to be materialised, the implementation process must be better planned. We need to explore the differences between the operation of the half-day and whole-day schools. Support such as staff development programmes for teachers and school administrators should also be provided.

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