To think a 3:20 finish is absurd?

[Itsr]

It’s mostly mums at the school gates. Because the 3:20 finish worked well at a time when most women stayed at home.

now most women work, which means two parents working, why does school finish ar 3:20?! Yes I know there are after school classes etc but some don’t go on for too long and they also cost.

what actually is the reason why the school day isn’t aligned with a work day (like it is with most private schools!)

1. They have less classes.

1. Schools don't exist to enable you to work. They exist to educate children. Young children don't need - and shouldn't be expected to cope with - the same working day as an adult.

Not in either of t( schools I’ve worked in, or any that my friends have they have broadly the same number of hours of lessons as state, just linger breaks and extensive co-curricular after.

In the country I was raised in, school finishes at 1pm. Be glad it's only 3.20...

Kids need time to play, have free time, learn on their own and be kids. They're kids, not adults. If they extended the school day I'd just home school mine.

That would be carnage! The longer the children have in unstructured time the worse their behaviour gets. It is much harder to manage behaviour in this time than it is in the classroom when they are being kept busy. The devil makes work for idle hands...

Most primary schools run like it is the 1950s

This. ^

Because schools can't operate from 0800 to 1800 every day. Let me guess, you'd like to put an end to long summer holidays too?

If you want longer school days then the teachers also finish much later. They will need to be paid more for working more hours. Therefore the school costs more to run. This model is of no benefit to the child, only the parents so the parents who want it will have to pay a premium for it. Simple as that.

Which Scandinavian countries are schools open and staffed to 9 pm?

We had children at state school in Denmark before settling in UK.

You had to pay for care from 6.30-8 am and paid for after school care from 1.30-5 pm.
Staff would consult with you if a primary child went in every day 6.30-17. Most Danes would consider it a very long day for young children.

In secondary school after school paid care closed at 5.30 pm with one night a week open to 7.30 pm (you would pay for dinner).

90% of the primary school children were pick up before 3.30 pm.

My husband does half the drop offs/pick ups. Maybe you have a DH problem?

When would teachers do marking and lesson planning?

Because school isnt a baby sitting service!

Private schools 'manage' it by having a rota of staff to cover the clubs and after school care until six. The children who are there 8 until 6 are simply exhausted and that's that sadly.

read my posts ffs. they do it each night on the living room floor whilst swearing at their whatsapp teacher group

I'm not saying it is easy but when you have children it is very difficult to have both parents working long hours and something needs to give, reduced hours, change of job/career for a few years etc...

Private schools finish at 4pm and have 18 weeks holidays; do you have 18 weeks annual leave? Would you prefer that?

Schools should not be aligned with work; what sort of childhood is that? You have to arrange childcare whether you like it or not

@TouchoftheTism your username speaks volumes. Quite unpleasant.

To let people work 9-5 schools would need to be 8-6. I did not far off that in private school but the middle of the afternoon (in winter) and the end of the afternoon (in summer) was sports. I don't think most schools have the space to accomdate all kids out of the classroom and the cost for paying staff would be very tricky for schools/government.

This isn’t all lessons though! Lessons will finish at 3:30 or thereabouts with prep/sport afterwards. Teachers are more abundant, class sizes are smaller, and they have more support.

My DC were at school in the 80s/90s and I worked full time . No after school clubs so I paid someone to collect and care for the DC until I finished work as did my friends .
It’s certainly not a new thing that Mums work !

I wouldn’t have felt ‘stuck’ - anything which prolonged the time before I had to return ‘home’ was fine by me.

My son was at school from 7.50 until 4pm with an hours journey either way, walk, local train, walk - home at 5 to more homework, left the house at 6.50am a long day but long holidays, 10 weeks in the summer.

I don’t believe he ever felt stuck - they are after all with friends and contemporaries during their school day.

School is not childcare. Also, teachers have a lot of work to do after the children leave. When do you expect this to be done? I really leave school before 5:30 and it’s often much later. Just use wrap around care like everyone else.

Maybe the government can start by teaching men to be genuinely equal partners and parents

Fixed that for you, babes.

Because you are paying them 25k plus instead of the limited resources state schools have? Plus they have an additional 5 weeks annual leave which will end costing you more.

What country you live in? How can you even compare it? teachers and staff in the UK state system are over stretched . It is a miracle we still have children.

All private schools here finish at 4pm.