Businesses worldwide are still dealing with poor employee engagement, growing calls for more flexibility, and high levels of burnout. And not just businesses, but even educational institutes, are dealing with the same crisis post covid. 

According to a Sharjah Private Education Authority (SPEA) study, having a three-day weekend increases productivity, time management, and the quality of learning results.

The study’s primary goals were to assess the productivity and standard of living in Sharjah’s educational community after the four-day workweek was put in place.

More than 31,000 families representing 70 different countries and more than 7,000 members of the educational and administrative staff participated in the survey, which served as the basis for the study. These children are from 127 private schools in Sharjah, which can accommodate more than 184,000 male and female students.

According to the study, a long weekend significantly increased work-life balance by 90%, enhanced social skills and relationships in students by 80%, increased administrative and instructional staff motivation by 80%, and raised academic achievement by 7%.

The productivity of the administrative and teaching employees increased by 86% due to the three days off.

According to Dr. Muhaddithah Al Hashemi, chairperson of SPEA, the experiment enabled educational institutions to finish their work, plans for lessons, and preparation while enabling families and students to manage their time effectively.

Further, students could spend more time with their families, improving their quality of life and happiness. Al Hashimi emphasized that the decision to labor for four days helped to significantly improve the quality and performance of every participant in the educational system, strengthening its competitiveness and adding a wealth of expertise.