Portland school officials are conducting an online survey to gauge public opinion on possible calendar changes to the school year that starts next September. Officials are looking for ways to change the calendar to provide more learning time for students and more time for educators to collaborate on curriculum and instructional improvement.

The survey, which is being conducted from today until No. 2, is available at here.

The survey seeks input on a variety of options regarding the length of the school year, the school starting date, the length and hours of the school day and the number of teacher work days, whether all schools in the district should have a consistent schedule and whether the district should continue releasing students early on Wednesday for teacher professional development.

The survey also asks an open-ended question about top priorities in setting the calendar.

Everyone in the community is invited to take the survey, including students, parents, staff and business owners.

The district plans to create focus groups in November to brainstorm ideas and analyze possible schedules. People interested in serving on a group can sign up at the end of the survey.

A steering committee will review the results of the survey and focus groups and draft recommendations by early December. Those recommendations will be posted online and the public will have an opportunity to comment.

The steering committee will present its recommendations to the Portland Board of Public Education in January.