Moscow Schools to Cut Back From Six to Five-Day Week

MOSCOW — Many schools in the Soviet capital will be cutting back from a six-day week to five days when the new term starts Thursday, Radio Moscow said.

“Teachers believe children will have more time for independent study and for sports, and that is an important trend in the educational reform being introduced,” the radio reported today.

The radio said first-graders will be in school five days a week, and that many of Moscow’s schools also will switch entirely to a five-day week.

Soviet children traditionally have attended classes Monday through Saturday from 8:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. or 1:30 p.m., depending on their age. The radio report did not say how much the school day would be increased to make up for the Saturday classes.