School
I look back with fondness those years of going back to school AFTER Labor day.
However, too much free time for kids… that’s another story. Kids seem to spend a lot of time not doing homework and studying… and more time entertaining themselves with food, video games and texting.
Now… you kids, get off my lawn!
I’m Irish, but I teach in England. In England, we get 6 weeks summer holidays, both Primary and Secondary(high) schools. In Ireland, Primary schools get 2 months, secondary schools get 3 months and colleges get 4 months. Our holidays are ridiculous, but I never complained ;D
What do teachers really do during the summer?
Relax, go on holidays, plan our lessons for the coming year, correct the summer exams. We actually have a fair bit of work to do during the summer
Summer was more valuable when kids spent it outdoors, running around and exploring. There’s no physical, mental, or emotional value to playing video games all day.
When we started after Labor Day, we also reliably were in school during June, so you don’t get three full months either way.
Teachers also use summer for major, long term projects…this year we have demolished and re-built the kitchen. School started last week and we’re still finishing up cabinets. So for me, school came a bit early.
I went to a Lutheran Elementary School. We went to school in August but were always out in May. Same number of days, but shifted by a week or two earlier from the public schools.
Interestingly, although I had a September-June schedule in public high school, the California State University used the August – May schedule as well. (With a semester break from 20(ish) December through February 1st.)
bowsie… Hello! And … wow… that’s a rather odd vacation schedule… I guess you just go with it, yah?
Yat… do you not know any teachers? Well, I know the teachers drink heavily DURING the school year… and in the summer, they drink heavily at a sunny beach FAR away from their school.
Chug… yah, outside being more full of running, biking, and not weighing 20 pounds more than what they would sitting in front of a tv with awful food choices is the better choice.
Mary… Where is this? June 15 to August 11th isn’t really an acceptable summer… that’s here in Salinas.
Judy… MAJOR longer term project for sure!
Pete… it’s all weird. We have a family member from Moscow… she told us that ALL the schools start on the same day… ALL of them all over the country. Less confusion this way… and no guessing.
As a teacher, I laughed out loud at the last panel! I appreciate that, Brig!
Yat… do you not know any teachers?
Come to think of it, I used to work with someone who left her accounting job to go into teaching. She lasted no more than a year and now she’s back working as an accountant. And she drank heavily before the teaching gig, so that part is hard to assess.
with the scourge of teaching to the standardized – if you fit the tester’s idea of a ‘normal’ background – tests and teaching to the test and the frequent elimination of things like other languages, art, and music in (us) schools and the lack of resources in lower income districts thanks to the evil and insane funding of schools by property tax and the frequent howling incompetence of school boards, i don’t know that students are getting much less education in the summer anyhow. with the extra time to google and wiki and netsurf, they might well be learning more. then again what do i know? i never learned not to use run-on sentences.
Megan… You are welcome! And I thank you for what you do!
THis TED Talks video is for you and all teachers:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SFnMTHhKdkw
Yat/anatman… It is sad when teachers aren’t given enough resources… and they have to make do. Educators are who we entrust to teach to our future, and we don’t let them teach… instead we bog them down with inane rules, stupid policy, and standardized testing. Human beings don’t fall into ONE box, but many! We don’t let teachers teach to the individual child… but we force kids into a one-size fits all box, take away art and music (something that cannot be standardized) and wonder why kids fail.
Okay… sorry, that went into a rant (sans run-on sentence). Teachers… Keep on teaching! … don’t become alcoholics, please!
This is a classic case of two sides to every story. When I went to school….. well, I didn’t. I skipped out on every class, often for entire years. I was too busy learning martial arts, being a spoiled new yorker, and occasionally hanging with me Pa in the sticks skinning bears and drinking.
I have been thanked for my absence by several teachers, oddly. I guess sometimes they just want a vacation from particularily troublesome students. And these days so many more of them are acting so much like me, it’s sad.