Megan Navarro
DRIPPING SPRINGS — Middle school students within Dripping Springs ISD will undergo a different type of class schedule this fall.
Currently, the middle schools follow the high school in using a block schedule with 90-minute periods, where the students attend four longer classes on “A days” and then, the remaining four classes on “B days.”
However, now, beginning in the 2026-27 school year, those students will be transitioning to a hybrid schedule. They will have three days of a traditional 48-minute class schedule, seeing all of their teachers for eight periods three days a week and then, on the other days, they will revert back to the block schedule for four periods per day with advisory.
The students will be on a traditional schedule Mondays, Tuesdays and Fridays, while on the block schedule Wednesdays and Thursdays.
It wasn’t just one variable that led DSISD to make this decision, said Dr. Karen Kidd, assistant superintendent for Learning & Innovation, as they have been looking at and reviewing schedules for middle school students since 2022.
She explained that when looking at similar school districts, DSISD was the only one of the 40 comparison groups that was doing the block scheduling, while other campuses were either doing a hybrid or traditional.
“What we did is we looked at all the evidence over the course of years and we kind of just did a blend from the teaching perspective and how students at that age learn,” Kidd said. “We need a little bit faster pace in the classroom sometimes, but then, there's also times where they need time to dig in deep. So, we really married the two together and decided that the hybrid was the best for us.”
Some schools have seven-period days, while others have eight-period days, but DSISD wanted to ensure that there was the least impact for student opportunities as possible, Kidd emphasized. This includes maintaining the number of electives that are offered, athletic and sixth grade band scheduling stays the same and a reduction in what students miss when they are absent or leave early.
“We have four electives that our students can choose from. Other schools might drop that down if they're only doing a seven period class. They might only have three choices for students or maybe even two choices,” she said. “We opted to not let the student feel the impact of the schedule change — taking away choices — and we left the choices the same, so we're still having the eight-period day with still the four electives and four core.”
From the teacher’s perspective, there is also the benefit of being able to support their students more throughout the week, especially in subject areas, like math and reading, that require frequent practice, Kidd continued. The new hybrid schedule also takes away any confusion that was brought on by the current, fluctuating block schedule.
Parents were notified of the change in April with a chance to attend an informational meeting May 7.
The new schedule format will go into effect for the 2026-27 school year. More information can be found at www.dsisdtx.us/page/ms-hybrid-schedule.
