Students hang their jackets as they arrive at the school of La Ronce in Ville d'Avray, west of Paris, Friday, Oct. 5, 2012. French children go to school four days a week with about two hours each day for lunch. And they have more vacation than their counterparts almost anywhere in the West. As a candidate, President Francois Hollande promised to change things by adding a fifth day of classes on Wednesday while shortening the school day and education minister, Vincent Peillon, will decide this month how to carry out the reform. (AP Photo/Christophe Ena)
France looks to upend school year traditions
Students hang their jackets as they arrive at the school of La Ronce in Ville d'Avray, west of Paris, Friday, Oct. 5, 2012. French children go to school four days a week with about two hours each day for lunch. And they have more vacation than their counterparts almost anywhere in the West. As a candidate, President Francois Hollande promised to change things by adding a fifth day of classes on Wednesday while shortening the school day and education minister, Vincent Peillon, will decide this month how to carry out the reform. (AP Photo/Christophe Ena)
By LORI HINNANT
Associated Press /
October 5, 2012
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Trimming the hallowed summer break is another tricky proposition. The school year ends at the beginning of July. Some families take July off, some August. But nearly everyone takes a month, and many French families travel for the entire period.
Peillon said he was flexible about vacation time: ‘‘If the question of vacation is blocking things, I'll propose that the prime minister leave it alone.’’
Eric Charbonnier, an OECD education expert, supports the proposed changes. He believes the current system isn’t working for the children most in need of a good education.
‘‘A schedule with long days and lots of vacation is not one that will help the students who are having problems,’’ he said.
Peter Gumbel, a British journalist who has lived in France since 2002 and written a book about the country’s education system, said the length of the school day is only part of the problem. He says that French schooling is outmoded, dull and grinding. His take is clear from his book’s title: ‘‘They Shoot Schoolchildren, Don’t They?’’
‘‘You have to tackle head-on the fundamental questions of the classroom,’’ he said, citing ‘‘the sheer heaviness of the national curriculum, the enormous amount of hours, the enormous amount of unbroken attention required, and the sheer boredom and tiredness.’’
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