Yes / “The summer break increases inequalities”
By Marie Duru-Bellatprofessor emeritus at Sciences Po and researcher at the Center for Research on Inequalities
Before even asking the question of whether or not to shorten the summer holidays, we should already start by respecting the official date for stopping classes. This year, it is set for July 8. However, we know that because of the organization of the exams, the absence of seconded teachers to correct the copies of the patent and the baccalaureate, the demotivation of the final year students who took their specialty tests last March, the classrooms classes were deserted very early. Which is a real problem!
Moreover, it would indeed seem judicious to me to reduce this long summer holiday period by fifteen days. The essential argument being that, according to all the studies carried out on the subject, children forget part of what they have learned during the year when they stay away from school for so long. This contributes to increasing the already very significant educational inequalities in our country because we know very well that the students who suffer the most are those from the most disadvantaged backgrounds. The parents themselves are well aware of this. Besides, it’s not just a fashion effect that holiday notebooks sell so well.
Cutting back on the summer holidays would also make it possible to loosen the time constraints a little during the year. From September the race begins, the teachers complain of having difficulty completing the programs and the students are under constant pressure. It would therefore be beneficial to distribute teaching hours more evenly over the year. And let’s stop trying to organize school time according to the wishes of families, the tourism industry, or teachers who would take a dim view of this reduction in their vacation time. Let’s not lose sight of the fact that the quality of learning must take precedence over the rest.
No/ “That would be a disservice to some parents”
By Claire Leconte, psychologist, specialist in child and adolescent rhythms
Reducing the summer break would have more disadvantages than benefits. I am thinking in particular of the separated parents who are more and more numerous in France: if we want the father and the mother each to have three weeks and the grandparents can also see their grandchildren, these two months are necessary . I don’t agree with the idea that it would reduce inequalities either. Some families take the time to get together during the summer, to play board games together or to do non-school activities. These different forms of learning will also serve them throughout their lives.
And then, depending on the territory, the summer period can be synonymous with hot weather. However, teaching in a room where the temperature is over 30°C is unbearable. On the other hand, I insist on the importance of getting back into the rhythm of school from August 15, that is to say, encouraging your child to go to bed at the same time as during the rest of the year to be resynchronized at the start of the school year.
If the summer holidays do not seem too long to me, it seems to me however essential to review the time of the small school holidays organized over four times two weeks. We are the only country in the world to operate like this. And for good reason ! This completely disrupts the biological rhythms of the child who will, each time, take several days to recover from this long break and to get back to school time. Similarly, the rhythm of four and a half days a week should be respected everywhere. Some French schools only have 140 days in the year to carry out the programs. While in other countries, teachers have 180 to 200 days to do everything. A huge difference that impoverishes learning.