大象传媒

Should school summer holidays be shorter?

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Do you like the long summer holiday, or would you prefer them to be a bit shorter, if you could have longer half terms?

This is a question being asked in Wales at the moment, as the Welsh government is considering cutting summer holidays in half from six weeks to three.

It's part of a bigger plan to change the shape of the school year in the country.

The Welsh government is asking people for their opinions to see how they feel about reducing the summer holidays by either one, two or three weeks.

The number of holiday days would remain the same though - they'd just be spread throughout the rest of the year.

Teaching unions - groups that represent teachers - have said research carried out on changing the school year doesn't show evidence that it would help students or teachers.

But experts have previously suggested that a shorter summer holiday could help pupils from disadvantaged backgrounds because children will still have access to things like free school meals.

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Image caption,

Would you like longer half terms and a shorter summer?

Ethan, who's nine, told 大象传媒 News that shorter summer holidays would help him in class.

"When the teacher says about stuff we learned before the summer holidays, I just don't remember - it's confusing," he said.

He thought longer half-terms as a result of a shorter summer holiday would help break up the school year.

"Half-term feels like something they just randomly do for fun, so two weeks would feel like something special is actually happening," he said. "So, yeah, I like that idea."

Image source, Getty Images

Hugo Hutchison, is the head teacher at Monmouth Comprehensive School which is close to the Wales-England border.

"For families who have primary school students in England with one set of term dates and their secondary school children coming to us in Wales - the family holiday will be entirely split which doesn't seem a fair at all."

He also said changes could have a big impact on teachers who want to have longer six week holidays.

"If we have a shorter summer holiday, something that is seen as a disadvantage in the terms of employment, then staff can very easily go a mile of two over the border and find another job," he said.

This change to tine spent in school is only one being considered in Wales - 14 schools in the country are already trialling an extended school day, by adding an extra five hours a week for children.

What do you think? Do you like having a long summer holiday? Or would you prefer more equal breaks throughout the year? Let us know in the comments!