France proposes to cut school summer holidays

[newsround]

France's education minister has sparked uproar by proposing to to cut summer holidays from eight to six weeks to prevent the country's children falling further behind in international league tables.

www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/europe/france/9893523/France-proposes-to-cut-school-summer-holidays.html

[meldrew]

Suggest that they also cut the August holiday for all the builders etc. we may just get some work done then - tag it on the Christmas, as no-one works in the cold anyway!

[judith]

I do feel that the French school day is far too long, especially for the younger children, so finishing at 3.30 pm and cutting two weeks from the summer holiday would be beneficial to the pupils. I'm not so sure the teachers will be impressed however, and that will lead to a lot of trouble.

[Ali]

I've always been amazed too at the hours the kids do.

I wonder tho how working parents will cope -it wld be a big change for them too.

[meldrew]

Conversely I think the French have it right - the namby pamby Uk schools think the little darlings should be released mid afternoon as their poor little brains may burst if they stay longer! Then when they get out of school they can lounge around on street corners and think of ways to cause mayhem, or just go home and play on video games?

Methinks perhaps though unlike my schooldays when we were trained to expect to work all day when we left school, nowadays they are training kids to expect not to work and to stay at home playing video games?!!!!

Bring back the Victorian age when kids were taught respect, the hard way if necessary.

PS my chimney needs a clean, anyone volunteer their kids for this, I will pay a penny!!!!!

[newport]

Quote

Methinks perhaps though unlike my schooldays when we were trained to expect to work all day when we left school, nowadays they are training kids to expect not to work and to stay at home playing video games?!!!!

and hand the money over at the end of the week!!!!

[Ali]

I used to get off the school bus at 5pm, walk up to work at a bakery til 7pm then walk at least 2 miles home EVERY week night. Then on Saturdays often I'd go and do the markets with same Bakery leaving at 6am and getting back at 7pm .................

If our school hours were more I wouldn't have been able to earn my own 'living' from 12 yrs old to 17 yrs.

[Bunty]

Mr B reading "Why French Children Don't throw food" he says its very enlighting I'm waiting my turn to read it

[judith]

Talking of food, Bunty, if French schools halved their two hour lunch break, then that would mean they could finish an hour earlier in the afternoon!

I do, however, applaud the way French schools "teach" the children to eat properly.

[tinkerbell]

Bet the grandparents will be supporting the call for shorter holidays.