[ShepherdsDog]

What are the opinions of both students and parents, out there. Is this a good idea, that should be put in place across the country, or is it a bad idea that will cause too many inconveniences?

http://www.cbc.ca/story/canada/national ... 50802.html

[The Hoser]

I think summer should be moved to the winter, or we should have 3 months off in the cold and 3 in the summer. Never all round. NEVER ALL ROUND.

[Stellar]

We would then loose a lot of money when it came to tourism if the new plan was implemented.

[ShepherdsDog]

Would we lose that much, or would it be spread out over the shorter but more frequent holidays.

[Dayseed]

Shepard,

How would you plan to go to the cottage for a month? Little towns (at least in Ontario) would dry up and blow away if not for sustained tourism.

But I guess the Yanks still come north to drop their money into the economy.

[Matsu]

From an educational standpoint it makes sense. You don't have to spend the month of September reviewing everything the students tried to forget over the summer.

[canucker]

Dayseed Dayseed:

Shepard,

How would you plan to go to the cottage for a month? Little towns (at least in Ontario) would dry up and blow away if not for sustained tourism.

I agree. It's alot easier (if you can even get a month off in vacation time) to get away while the kids are out of school for a couple of months. You can't really take them out of school for that amount of time.

[Tman1]

Don't they already do this kind of thing in Japan? I think it would be much more stressful.

[Blue_Nose]

I would have loved a month off in the winter to go skiing instead of two in the summer... I was always stir crazy by the end of summer vacation.

[Thematic-Device]

Matsu Matsu:

From an educational standpoint it makes sense. You don't have to spend the month of September reviewing everything the students tried to forget over the summer.

No instead you spread out your review days over the year to teach kids what they had learned two weeks ago. You also hamper efforts to make money over the summer break.

[Matsu]

I don't see how it would be more stressful. Shorter more frequent breaks would make it easier on everyone.

[Matsu]

How many kids work over summer break? The original idea was to give the kids a break in order for them to work on the farm.

Besides which, you're probably already reviewing what the kids learned two weeks ago already.

[Tman1]

Matsu Matsu:

I don't see how it would be more stressful. Shorter more frequent breaks would make it easier on everyone.

I guess, but come crunch time, more will be cramming for those exams before each little break.

[ShepherdsDog]

Personally, I can only take about 2 weeks in a row at the cottage. Two hundred school days spread over the entire year, still allows for long enough breaks. That two month stretch can be a killer on parents who work. Here in Taiwan, the school year is year round for the most part, as the schools run half days in the summer. Just a few years ago it ran 6 days a week. M &F 7:30 - 4:00, T&T 7:30 - 5:00, W & Sa 8:00 - 12:00. On top of this the kids are in cram schools -Math, Science, English, Music, Art etc. , as well as piano lessons, ballet lessons and sports.

A few years ago, a Taiwanese co worker of mine sent his son to a private highschool in Vancouver. I helped tutor him a bit and he was full of questions about what Canadian schools were like. When he found out about the hours, he was dumbfounded. He thought he'd died and gone to heaven, as his day usually began at 6 AM and ended near midnight. He's now in Grade 12 and an honours student. His biggest complaint now is having too much time on his hands.

Personally, I think there is room for both. My wife, who has taught in both Canada and Taiwan, would like to see this program at home too. The two month holiday was originally created for farming families and since Canada is no longer an agrarian society, why not change the school year to reflect society?

[CanadianHeat]

i have lived in many places. I have also seen this plan implemented, and i have seen it fail. Students wouldn't be able to work for the summer to help support themselves for the future (buying a car, saving up for further education). However, the question also needs some background info. In the rovince of Manitoba where i lived last, their has to be 200 days of school scheduled for the year. In South Carolina, it is 170, Georgia 150 (but thats America, and yes im Canadian). The point is you can probably knock out 2 years worth of school in just 1 year. So from K-12 (or grade 13) you can finish that in 6 years. So you would be done school at the age of 12, you would have to go to university AT 12. Then get married by 14, get a divorce at 15, and have 3 kids by 16 with a new wife. Not to mention you would be doin drugs at 10. cause at ten you will be in high school.