Governor Kevin Stitt has signed legislation increasing the minimum number of instructional days for certain Oklahoma public schools beginning in the 2027-28 school year.
House Bill 3151 raises the minimum number of instructional days from 166 to 173 for schools operating under an hours-based calendar while keeping the current requirement of 1,086 instructional hours.
The change will only take effect if funding for the Oklahoma State Department of Education increases by at least $175 million over the next two fiscal years.
Oklahoma Representative Rob Hall said the measure is designed to create a more consistent school calendar while still allowing districts flexibility.
βA lot of districts are already meeting this standard today,β Hall said. βIt simply spreads that time across more days in a way that can better support student learning.β
The measure also requires school districts that hold parent-teacher conferences during the school day to provide an in-person option for parents and legal guardians.
House Speaker Pro Tem Lonnie Paxton, the Senate author of the bill, said the measure balances school flexibility with additional classroom time and ties the requirement to increased education funding.
Several education and business organizations backed the legislation, including the Oklahoma Education Association, Cooperative Council for Oklahoma School Administration and the State Chamber.
When are we going to stop putting Band-Aids on gaping, open wounds and calling it “good”? Sure, it makes everybody feel good to say that they’re adding more days to the school year; however, have they done anything to stop absenteeism? I’m talking about fundamental changes, not just A-F report cards or “hold them teachers accountable!” What about all of the school activity absences? We have sports tournaments right in the middle of the school day, FFA activities that take kids out for up to two weeks at a time, and an environment in which kids can miss for the sniffles and have it excused. There are schools in Oklahoma dealing with such serious behavior issues that you’d think the school was an institution for the developmentally disabled. There are teachers getting hit, kicked, and sworn at–and laws in place saying that kids who put on “melt-down” shows can’t be restrained. The teachers will get everybody ELSE out of the room, then try to “restore the relationship” with the kid throwing a fit. When all of this is going on, WHO, pray tell, is teaching the children?
All of this is to say that we’ve got SERIOUS problems in Oklahoma education–there’s a reason we’re near the bottom in the nation, and it has nothing to do with adding a few more days to the school year.