to be violently opposed to the summer holidays being shortened to three weeks

[emkana]

Don't know if there's been a thread about this yet?

Suggested by Frank Field, adviser to David Cameron, because poorer children don't get the stimulation during the summer holidays and therefore fall behind.

Libby Purves wrote quite rightly in the Times yesterday that that is no good reason to deprive all children of the long summer break (and the teachers!), rather more enrichment should be offered during the holidays for deprived children.

3 WEEKS? THAT IS TOO LONG

Ampere - the INSET days were taken from the teachers' holidays in the 80s. They are not a perk; I can't think of a teacher who doesn't loathe them. Children are taught for as many days as they always were. It was shit unions got teachers that deal.

I see no evidence of teachers claiming more stress than others, or being martyred, just those who know saying what the job is like. In fact, it was someone citing A and E who started the more stressed than thou boringness. So get on their case why don't you?

Teachers don't set the school year, local authorities do it.

Ampere, teachers are not generally playing the stress card. Infact I specifically said I could think of more stressful jobs than my own and that I had no intention of qualifying for the hardest working person award.

I quite like an INSET actually.

Ampere those activities are not the preserve of the SAHM at all, I may struggle to fit them in but we manage it as do most of my friends.

Swallowedafly as a regular teacher I never spent beyond a day or so planning for the next year over the summer but as a senior teacher I am required to spend a week in school over the summer. I am then required to do work in response to our exam results , that can only be done in the summer. Recent curriculum changes have meant that I have had to replan exam schemes of work. I may not be a super speedy worker but think I do quite well at time management

It is ridiculousness, oh yes stop everybody having a lovely long summer because some useless parents do nothing with their kids.
We are not in anyway well off but I have yet to have un- stimulated children in the summer holidays.

it isn't about monetry poor it is about socialy poor

i was mainly responding to previous posts.

I am not moaning, if I hated my job I would do something else. I am very lucky to have a job I enjoy, that is fulfilling, has frequent holidays and pays well. I was pointing out why I had to work in the holidays, as it was suggested above that I must be crap at managing my time. As a mainscale teacher I managed to fit most things in term time but I now have extra things to do so most of the work created by my classes tends to be pushed to the weekends or holidays. When I mentioned workloads created by exams I did not mean individual classes, but across the whole school for every year group. But as you say I chose that.

I said above I could see that reducing the long summer holiday to four weeks may be sensible. Tbh it would leave little holiday for someone like me over the summer but that is why we are paid extra. I would not like to see the summer holiday go under 4 weeks though.

Oh I see Swallowed you're secondary, well as a primary teacher I did a lot of bloody work in the holidays and had to. I was a very good teacher with excellent time management thanks.

You try planning for several different areas of a national curriculum(science,geography,history,RE,music,Pe,ICT,art) and daily literacy and numeracy hours for a new class,manage and set up a classroom oh and frequently change year groups.

Think you'll find it takes a minimum of a couple of weeks as does recharging to cope with 30 under 10s.

All teachers are different with different styles,subjects and ages-1 size does not fit all. Personally I don't want my kids taught by worn out, under planned teachers.

I think this subject should be decided by teachers doing the job not some do gooder in Whitehall. Ballot teachers and find out what the majority thinks. They know what their needs and their pupil's needs are or don't the views of the people actually doing the job count. Bet Frank Field hasn't been near a classroom in years.

YANBU. Yes perhaps shorten the holiday to 5 weeks, But both teachers and children need that summer break.

Swallowed TA support

Hmmm reports are once a year.

However it isn't a competition and as you point out it's a silly argument so please don't presume to speak for the needs of all teachers.

So you could make do with 3 weeks woopy do,many couldn't and it doesn't make them a lesser teacher for it. Teachers have different styles,needs,personalities and circumstances, it's pretty arrogant to say any teacher who doesn't plan like you did is incompetent

Children don't readily go to sleep when it is light outside. It's far easier to get them well rested for school the next day when the days are shorter. So the longer summer holidays are not just an anachronism from the days when we all had to get the harvest in. The seasons haven't changed, and neither has human physiology. Politicians need to take into account the natural world as well as the socio-economic one.

I would like our six weeks to be extended to something similar to what just about everyone else in Europe seems to have, which is all of July as well as August.

Rose I would too, the US is the same as well isn't it?

My 3 5,5 and 6 really weren't ready to go back,they needed the break. Ours was slightly shorter this year(5 and a bit weeks) and everybody has been moaning about it both working and SAHM.

I work but not during the hols but don't get paid so money is very tight during the school hols but I know what's best for my kids and they need a decent break in the summer.

Anyone teaching before the days if ppa would find the work load unbelievable now .. Adding extra initiatives and curriculum frequently. Every year there is a new letter added onto p.s.h.c.e ! Teachers and kids are on a conveyor belt in even the best schools and need the break. And a long one at that !

Also it is my understanding that teachers do not get 13 weeks paid holiday their salary is, according to the union ,money paid for actual
days worked but then equally divided by twelve months.

We are paid for our directed days which is then split between 12 months.

I have been teaching for a long time. When I started the holidays were brilliant because they were holidays. You went off in the summer and you could forget about school and just go in a few days before the start of the new term and sort your classroom. Kaggle34 is right and the workload is now unbelievable! There is so much paperwork that it eats into the holidays and it isn't anything to do with poor time management!

We only get decent weather from mid may to September. Why have bored children skulking around in the cold and the rain.

Exactly and those of us who can only afford to holiday in GB(camping etc) would be vying for the same 3 weeks. Everywhere would be absolutely heaving.

What would happen is people would simply take them out of the school holidays more than they do now in effect latching 2 weeks on,probably the very kids Frank Field is talking about.