Two Terms, Long Vacation

Press, Volume CIV, Issue 30936, 17 December 1965, Page 3

Two Terms, Long Vacation

(X.Z. Press Association) ; WELLINGTON, December 16. The two-term school ( year and three-months’ summer holiday were suggested by a meeting of hotel, motel and tourist industry executives organised by the Associated Chambers of Commerce today. The meeting passed what was termed a “preliminary'’! motion. This asked the Government to investigate the’ possibility of dividing the school year into two equal! terms, and adding the extra holidays to the summer vacation. This would be of! [three months’ duration, ex- ! tending from two weeks before Christmas to March. Miss M. A. Ogle said the move would be highly unpopular with mothers of young children. Another speaker said the threemonths summer holiday could bring social problems for primary school children. The senior inspector of schools, Mr S. Utting, who attended as an observer, said that as anyone who had visited overseas realised, the results of the present Educational set up were more than satisfactory. “One way and another we don’t do too badly.” In the three-term year, young New Zealanders received much more than the formal education requirements, they were trained in such fields as sport and drama, and received a general all-round grounding, together with education of a high and wide standard, said Mr Utting.

Statistics showed that 49 per cent of New Zealand workers were able to choose the month in which they took their holidays, and 29 per cent, had their own choice of dates, the meeting was told. This gave them a choice between mid-December and the end of January, if they had children of school age. Mr D. P. Munro, for the Retailers’ Federation, said bis

organisation bad not decided on any change in the school year. This would bring tremendous upheavals which might not balance out. “Because the month of December is its busiest period of the year, it would be unable to release its employees during this period, even though school children would be on holiday,” he said. “This could mean holidays without one parent."

Miss Ogle said the long break would be of value to people such as teachers, giving opportunities for the American system of refresher courses in the summer vacation. However, the long break could mean a major loss of “work habits” in the children. After so long “out of gear,” children would have difficulty in taking up the threads of learning and discipline.