[Nedusa]

I think the current system is OK , schoolchildren are already pushed to study far harder than I ever was, what with after school clubs, homework clubs, Saturday school, out of term tuition, pre exam tuition etc.. I think there are already enough demands on them without having to formally reduce the amount of out of term time they have.

Also teachers need this time to prepare lesson plans, study plans, exam practice etc... It's not as if the teachers are any less busy out of term time. I see no gain in forcing pupils to sit in classrooms for even longer.

If the govt is worried about the length of the summer break inasmuch as it allows large numbers of bored children to roam the streets then maybe summer camps like they have in the US could be the answer, two weeks away would be fine and it would give the parents a break as well....!!!

[Vicky.]

Hes also on about introducing (or has already introduced ) 'performance related pay' for teachers. which I think is wildly unfair. It is not a teachers fault if they get a kids thats just unwilling to learn. And there are plenty of those around. If the school happens to be in a bad area, the teacher will get their pay docked through no fault of their own. They could be the best teacher in the world, but with a class with half the kids being ignorant twats...they are still going to fail.

Performance related pay for MPs sounds a better idea

[Jack_]

https://twitter.com/dmreporter/statu...76418407436288

[Niamh.]

Originally Posted by Vicky.

Gove is a twat. Mind I do think the 6 week holidays are too long.

And school days do seem shorter now than they used to be. When I was at school like 10 years ago..we did 9am - 3.30pm, with a 15 min break and 30 mins for lunch. The same school now does 9am - 3pm. with an hour for lunch and a 20 min break.

That said I dont think making the schoolday longer would improve peoples education anyway.

The kids over here get even more time than that off, primary schools get the whole months of July and August off and secondary schools get all that plus most of June too. It is a long time and hard for parents to keep kids entertained sometimes but at the same time, they're kids let them have their time off, they'll be adults and working for long enough. Some of my best memories are from long childhood summers

[Roy Mars III]

people in China go to school seven days a week for ten hours a day. This is why they are #1

[Livia]

I can't see the teachers giving up their three months+ of holidays every year, not without a fight.

[Vicky.]

Originally Posted by Livia

I can't see the teachers giving up their three months+ of holidays every year, not without a fight.

Would be fun to see the unions fighting it though..trying to make out that shorter holidays will be detrimental to the childrens education

[Livia]

Originally Posted by Vicky.

Would be fun to see the unions fighting it though..trying to make out that shorter holidays will be detrimental to the childrens education

I know! I just emailed my friend who's a primary teacher. She lives about 80 miles from me, and if I'm very, very quiet... I think I can hear her screaming.