The Nuffield Foundation Suggests Reforming The School Year (BBC News)

eazybee

^MayBee70 exactly all employers and workplaces have to have a certain degree of flexibility, it would be chaos if the entire U.K. came to a halt for the same weeks each year.^
Maybe the education department should consider this as opposed to sticking to their rigid curriculum.

And exactly how do you propose to make this degree of flexibilty work as you abandon the rigid curriculum?Granny Gravy?
Indidvidual curriculums for indivdual learners?

Having had children in private and state schools, private schools have more flexibility.

Looking at schools now compared to when our children were in education they appear to be obsessed with league tables and ticking boxes.

Education is no longer child centric.

Can you define child centric without resorting to a googled definition?

At nursery a long time ago we were expected to develop each child’s schema, the fashionable word at the time. Even with the higher staff child ratio in nursery, you can’t do that for 26 individual children with 26 individual schemas and the children needed to learn other skills alongside.

EYFS- lots of learning through play, but children learn at different speeds, and arrive from different starting points, with increasing numbers non-verbal or with a label which has to be catered for.

This differentiation continues throughout the early years but

There has to be an underlying curriculum of skills and knowledge they need to acquire and teachers teach that, taking into account the children’s existing abilities and needs.

With that, there are children (you’ve read about them on GN) who come to school already reading, or with other academic or non-academic skills like gymnastics, singing or art, which need to be taken into account.
The parents expect to see progress in these skills, (e.g. moving up the reading scheme) and those whose children aren’t already reading expect their child to rapidly acquire the skill, even if they take them out of school in term time.

Where doesn’t child centric fit into that?

GrannyGravy13

Ziplock our children’s memories of their travels with us which they still reminisce about more than compensates for a telling off on an anonymous forum.

(As does their degrees, careers and happy children of their own)

I remember mentioning to DD's primary school teacher that we had booked a holiday to France before the end of the summer term and she replied that DD would learn far more on a trip to France than she would in the last two weeks of the school year.

GrannyGravy13

MayBee70 exactly all employers and workplaces have to have a certain degree of flexibility, it would be chaos if the entire U.K. came to a halt for the same weeks each year.

Maybe the education department should consider this as opposed to sticking to their rigid curriculum.

Not all employers have flexibility for good reason.
The Armed Forces for one.

Schools are not permitted to authorise holidays in term time.
This is an edict from the local authority, not the Headteacher.

We have ridiculously long Summer Breaks but then it is really hot during this time so I suppose it makes sense. Think mid December until Feb. Unis are even longer, they don’t return until March.

MayBee70

Will that mean that holidays during a four week summer holiday period will be even more extortionate? Maybe schools should be a bit more understanding if parents choose to take their children abroad during school time ( given that travel is important for children).

Well, agreed. I think it will inevitably lead to more children being taken out of school during term-time because of the greedy practices of airlines and holiday companies.

What about the UK tourist industry. And can you imagine what the motorways will be like with everyone having holidays at the same time. I’m saying this as someone who regards education as one of the most important things in this country.

Will people have holidays at the same time any more than they do now? There will still be the same number of weeks out of school. We often stayed at home in the summer and went away at Easter/Christmas, or the February/October half terms. During the primary years we occasionally missed the last two or three days of the term in order to get away when it was cheaper.

The children missed nothing apart from Christmas dvds and printed sheets of Christmasy stuff. I printed similar off to keep them occupied while travelling. They never missed the school plays or the carol service in church. The same was true for the last few days of the summer term.

It's that time again!

The USA has summer holidays that are 10 to 12 weeks depending on the State. Our holidays are about average in length.

Chocolatelovinggran

Schools are not permitted to authorise holidays in term time.
This is an edict from the local authority, not the Headteacher.

In the case of local authority schools yes, but headteachers may use their discretion to authorise absences in term time.

Academies do not come under local authority control in this respect.
Neither of course do private schools.

Allira the armed forces of the 21st century are extremely flexible unless you are deployed to a war zone.

escaped, I was not allowed to exercise discretion in this matter when I was a Headteacher.
I agree Academy chains may make their own rules, but those of whom I have knowledge have similar rules.

Mollygo perhaps child centric was the wrong phrase.

I have been a parent/grandparent helper and as I posted up thread we have teachers in our extended family.

The HT of today have so much box ticking to ensure their place in the school tables and the dreaded Ofsted prize of excellence that there is no time for the quiet child, the gifted child, the sporty child.

They are like products in a factory, fed in at one end and turned out at the other all expected to have the same knowledge and ability, which of course they do not and then are made to feel like failures if the dreaded SATS are below expectations.

These are our precious next generation, I know they have to learn and be prepared for senior school, but nothing I have seen since Covid has convinced me that the Education Department have got it right, just look at all the youngsters trying to get access to mental healthcare some as young as 7-8, this must be an indicator for change…

The children missed nothing apart from Christmas dvds and printed sheets of Christmasy stuff. I printed similar off to keep them occupied while travelling. They never missed the school plays or the carol service in church. The same was true for the last few days of the summer term.

Same old story, don't miss anything important at Christmas or end of school year because getting a cheaper holiday is far more important. The Christmas week is full of Christmas activities and information, plus assemblies, carols and parties. Summer term is preparation for next term, with transfer to new class, sorting out places, timetables and activities and children who miss this time start the new year at a disadvantage; oh yes they do.
Some primary schools do try to arrange at least three of the training days at the end of the school year, so parents may beat the school holiday price hike,(but not teachers). Undoubtedly the travel companies will catch on to this, but which is most important: a child's education or a foreign holiday?

Mine never missed the start of the school term. I was told by the class teacher each time they missed those few days that they would miss nothing important. I asked for school work that would be missed and told there was none. This was at primary not secondary where I did find some teachers worked to the last day.

You don't help your case buy complaining about teacher's holidays.

easybee it’s not just foreign holidays a campsite in the back of beyond in the UK puts its prices up in the school holidays, as do Centre Parc’s, Butlin’s, hotels.

It is basically being punished in your pocket for having children and wanting to give them family experiences

How does it work for home educated children of which there is an increasing number year on year? I'm guessing they can have time out whenever they like.

GrannyGravy13

Allira the armed forces of the 21st century are extremely flexible unless you are deployed to a war zone.

Well, if you're sailing overseas on one of HM ships, they're not going to wait for you because you want to take the children on holiday in the school holidays.

I remember someone I knew being astonished because the RN was not flying DH home for the birth of our second child. 😀

Yes, I do know that, years later, Prince Andrew was flown home in time for the birth of Princess Beatrice. 🤬

Allira

GrannyGravy13

Allira the armed forces of the 21st century are extremely flexible unless you are deployed to a war zone.

Well, if you're sailing overseas on one of HM ships, they're not going to wait for you because you want to take the children on holiday in the school holidays.

I remember someone I knew being astonished because the RN was not flying DH home for the birth of our second child. 😀

Yes, the Navy is different to the Air Force and Army, sorry I should have been clearer.

When you think about it, the only people who can dictate when they can take their children on holiday are those who can afford Tutors or to home tutor themselves.

We so seem to be a country that expects an excessive service from the lowest possible tax. It obviously reasonable to expect good value for our taxes but if you want big changes - as we did after the war - we really have to accept that we have to pay for them.

Takes my daughter a couple of weeks to decompress from the pressures of secondary. She just about gets back to her normal self and it’s time to go back. I’d be all for an extra couple of weeks in the summer!

PaperMonster2

Takes my daughter a couple of weeks to decompress from the pressures of secondary. She just about gets back to her normal self and it’s time to go back. I’d be all for an extra couple of weeks in the summer!

Then there's all the work in the 'holidays' in preparation for the new term. DIL is working a couple of days a week.

Anyone remember Wakes weeks? Or Potters' holidays?
Blackpool or Rhyl were the places to go!
I think I first went to Blackpool when I was about six weeks old.