Last fall, a teacher collaboration period appeared on our schedules. I was pleasantly surprised that my weekends would now begin a little earlier, and most teachers were happy they’d have this necessary time to meet with their colleagues. The principle of that block is a good one: teachers can do their jobs better if they have a chance to hash out problems or brainstorm innovative curriculum changes with others.

But, in practice, Collaboration Time has been a mess. Teachers, parents and many students are unhappy.

Superintendent Bill Lupini said one parent called the 40 minute block each Friday afternoon “a nuisance.” That seems an apt description.

By the time G-block teachers have spoken to departing students and tidied up their rooms, 10 minutes could have passed. It may take another five minutes to get to where the teacher wants to meet and another two for everyone to find a comfy chair and pull out a laptop. By this point, it’s 2:32 p.m., and the meeting has effectively been cut down to 23 minutes. Not much can be accomplished.

In Newton, the high schools let out around an hour earlier than usual on Tuesdays so faculty can meet. This makes much more sense. As the Brookline Educators Union (BEU) works towards a new contract this year (Collaboration Time is decided in that contract), lengthening the block should be part of the agenda.

But simply making Collaboration Time longer does not solve all its problems. The day of the week needs to change too.

No one is at their best on Fridays. Most teachers are worn down from a tiring week and would rather go home than have a productive meeting.

Students who participate in after school extracurriculars are stuck too, because most clubs, drama groups and sports are led by teachers who can’t start until their meetings are over. Most students aren’t in the right mindset to work once the weekend has already begun. As a result, the 40 minutes go to waste.

But the block has the potential to be a real asset. Placing Collaboration Time on another day would give students a valuable opportunity to do group work while waiting for their extracurriculars to start.

Lupini said Collaboration Time was placed on Fridays because parents had told him it would be easier to make schedule modifications then than on any other day. That makes sense for the elementary schools, but not for the high school, since the vast majority of students here aren’t being picked up by their parents.

Lupini needs to finalize next year’s schedule in December, which is before the School Committee and the BEU will agree on a new contract. As a result, the 40 minute block is set in stone, at least for the 2015-16 school year.

But, after listening to his concerns and explanations, I asked Lupini if he’d be willing to change the day for the high school, and leave it the same at the elementary schools. Doing so would seem the best temporary fix. Lupini couldn’t come up with a logistical issue in doing so.

Still, he said no. He would wait to reevaluate the day until it included more time.

That’s disappointing. We have a chance to make an improvement, however small it might be. Flipping Friday with another day would take very little logistical work, and would make the time more productive both for students and for teachers.

Superintendent Lupini, I urge you to reconsider.

Jeremy Margolis can be contacted at [email protected]